My Favorite Lentil Soup

Here is a recipe for my favorite lentil soup. I make this all of the time because I usually have all of the ingredients on hand. It originally came from Giada De Laurentiis, but I altered it to my liking. Don’t tell mom and dad, but I think it’s better than the one we used to have at home.

Ingredients:

Olive Oil

6 slices of chopped turkey bacon

1 Chopped medium onion

2 chopped carrots

2 chopped celery stalks

2 minced garlic cloves

Freshly ground black pepper

14 1/2 oz can of diced tomatoes

16 oz of lentils

11 cups low sodium chicken broth (or use bouillon cubes)

A bunch of dried thyme

2/3 cup of small pasta (macaroni works great)

Shredded fresh parmesan

Pour 2 Tablespoons of olive oil into a large pot. Turn on medium heat over stove and cook bacon. Once bacon is cooked, add onion, celery, carrots, and garlic and cook until onion is translucent. Season with pepper. Pour lentils and diced tomatoes into pot and stir to coat lentils in vegetables and tomatoes. Stir occasionally and let mixture simmer for 8 minutes. Add chicken broth and put about a Tablespoon of dried Thyme into the pot. Bring to a boil over high heat, then turn heat to low and let simmer for 30 minutes. Add the pasta and cook until pasta is done (usually about 8 minutes). Salt and pepper to taste. Ladle soup into bowls. Top with shredded fresh parmesan and a drizzle of olive oil. Serve with warm corn bread. Yum.