Lentil soup for Tisha B'Av

Round foods are eaten around this holiday when one is not fasting. Lentil soup is one of these foods. Lentil soup is easy to make and keeps in the refrigerator 3-5 days. It also freezes well. 

2 tsp. olive oil

1 onion, chopped in small pieces

2 garlic cloves, minced (An easy way to remove skins is rub cloves back and forth in a rubber bottle opener.)

1 large carrot chopped (1 1/4 cups chopped)

2 celery stalks, chopped (1 1/4 cups)

2 cups dried lentils, any color except black French lentils

6 cups vegetable or chicken soup

1/2 tsp. cumin

1/2 tsp. ground coriander

1 1/2 tsp. paprika

2 dry bay leaves

1 tsp. lemon zest

2 tsp. lemon juice

1/4 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

In a stock pot, put in olive oil and fry a chopped onion to translucent about 2-3 minutes.

Add celery and carrots and cook 5-7 minutes. Add rest of the ingredients, except salt and lemon. (Adding salt to cooking beans tends to make beans tougher.) Cover and simmer on low heat for 40 minutes until lentils are soft. You can use canned lentils and simmer the soup for 15 minutes until carrots are softened. A stick blender can be used to make a thicker soup. If needed, adjust the salt and pepper. Add more broth if you prefer a thinner soup. 

To serve use hearty slices of bread and chopped parsley as garnish. A salad would complete the meal. 

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