Spicy Red Lentil Soup

  

I'm a big fan of soups.  I love how the flavors come together to create something new, I love that they're usually good for several meals and I love that there's typically very few dishes when you're done cooking.  I hate dishes.  This is a great weeknight soup, it doesn't take forever to come together, especially because the red lentils cook faster than most of the other lentil varietals.

What you'll need:

• 1 onion, diced
• 1/2 cup green chilies, diced (to taste for preferred spiciness)
• 2 stalks of celery, diced
• 1 ear of corn, kernels removed (about 1 cup)
• 1 T olive oil (or cooking oil of your choice)
• 1 cup red split lentils (tip: they're actually orange ;-)
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• 4 cups water (or stock if you have some on hand)
• Avocado, cotija cheese (or feta), cilantro, sour cream, etc. for garnish
• 1 t. dried basil
• 1 t. dried oregano
• 1 t. cumin
• 1 T chili powder (to taste and depending on how many fresh chilies you put in).

Heat your olive oil over medium-high heat, add your celery, onion and green chilies and saute until translucent.

Add your corn and lentils and saute until the lentils begin to soften (just a few minutes).

Add your tomatoes, spices and water.

Cover and simmer for about 30 minutes, until the lentils are tender and the veggies are cooked through.  The soup will thicken quite a bit, so feel free to add more water if you want it a little "soupier."

Garnish with everything but the kitchen sink!  And then try not to eat the whole pot, this stuff just gets better when it sits in the fridge a bit!