Bonne Année Lentil Soup

Bonne Année du Puy Lentil Soup

Serves 8

It is good luck in many countries to eat beans on the first day of the New Year.

In France it’s lentils, in the southern United States it’s black-eye peas with rice.

Ladle out this lucky, comforting soup as a way to start your New Year.

We like du Puy lentils, or at the very least French green lentils, because they are more flavorful and toothsome than the mealy generic lentils you see in the grocery store.

1 lb du Puy lentils, or French green lentils 

2 TBL olive oil 

1 pkg (8-10 slices) Canadian bacon, diced  (nitrate and hormone free)

1 small yellow onion, diced 

4 garlic cloves, minced 

8 cups vegetable or chicken broth (preferably homemade. If not, Rapunzel organic low-sodium is good) 

2 bay leaves 

½ tsp dried thyme 

salt and pepper, to taste

Rinse lentils well in a colander. (There is no need to soak them.) Remove any stones or dirt you find. Set aside.
In a large pot, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the Canadian bacon, onion, and garlic. Cook, stirring, onions are translucent.
To the pot add the lentils, broth, bay leaves, and thyme. Turn the heat to high and bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer. Keep pot partially covered and simmer for 1 hour. Stir occasionally.
Taste to see if the seasonings need adjusting. Continue to simmer.
If you want this served as a soup, stop cooking while there is still broth in the pot. To serve as a thick side dish, simmer until it is very thick, stirring frequently so it doesn’t scorch.

Comments

Easter Babies (Croatian Easter Bread Dolls)

Easter Babies ******* Makes 12 Easter Babies These Easter Babies (Croatian Easter bread dolls a.k.a. primorski uskrsne bebe ) are a new tradition in our family. The egg dying, dough mixing and braiding is so fun for children and grownups—it’s contagious. Traditionally, they are made with red-dyed eggs, but we use the colors we already have dyed. They make sweet gifts and they also look charming laying next to each Easter dinner plate. This lady uses naturally dyed eggs for her Easter babies. If you're already making challa bread , use extra challa dough for these babies (simply make enough dough for 2 loaves, only bake one challa, and use the remaining dough for the Easter Babies).

Sprouts Foo Young

Sprouts Foo Young ******* For each pancake: 2 eggs Grapeseed oil or ghee 1 C sprouts (alfalfa, sunflower, mung bean) 1 small clove garlic, minced ¼ C chopped green onion tops 1 tsp freshly grated ginger (or pinch of ground ginger) ½ to 1 tsp Braggs amino sauce (like soy sauce) Optional: add shrimp or fresh crab meat to step #1 Add a bit of oil in a small skillet. Over medium heat sautee garlic, ginger and green onion tops. Do not brown the garlic—that will make it bitter. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, whisk eggs until light and fluffy. Whisk in Braggs. When garlic is fragrant, add a bit more oil, then add sprouts, give them a stir or two (to mix with garlic, etc.), and pour egg over all. Cook like an omelette, or flip like a pancake to brown on both sides.

How to Freeze Avocados to Use in Smoothies

How to Freeze Avocados to Use in Smoothies We add an avocado to our daily smoothies, but it's nearly impossible to have a "just right" ripe avocado every day since they go bad quickly. Sometimes we only needed half an avocado. Here's a simple way: a smooth purée. For every avocado you need 1 tablespoon of lemon juice, and it keeps its bright green color if you purée it rather than mash it like you would for guacamole. Each avocado = 3/4 cup purée (12 tablespoons). Sometimes I will make a big batch, like 18 avocados, so I need over 1 cup lemon juice for that quantity of purée (4 tablespoons = 1/4 cup). Now it's easy to have that daily avocado! 6 avocados, ripe 6 TBL lemon juice, fresh-squeezed 6 sandwich-sized zip-loc plastic bags 1 ice-cream scoop that measures 1/4-cup servings 1 large tray Wash avocados. Make a cut around each avocado starting at the stem end, and cut all the way around. Twist to

The Family Table

Search This Blog