Pumpkin soup with red lentils and ginger

 

Yesterday we woke up to a coating of sky crud, with icy shards hurled in our faces by an unreasonably harsh wind. Today it was 9 degrees when we rolled out of bed. Hence another new soup recipe.

Pumpkin soup with lentils

Adapted from Better Homes and Gardens October 2013

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 small onion, cut into thin slices

1 yellow bell pepper, seeded and cut into short slices (you want them small enough to fit on a soup spoon so they’re eater-friendly)

½ cup red lentils

2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger

1 teaspoon curry powder

1 teaspoon ground cumin

3 cups broth

1 15-ounce can pumpkin puree

Method

In a large Dutch oven, heat olive oil over medium high heat. Add onions, pepper and lentils and cook for 2 minutes. Mix in ginger, curry powder, cumin and cook a minute until fragrant. Add broth and pumpkin. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium  low and cook for 30 minutes or until lentils are tender but still have some structure. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serves 4.

Rating: Quite nice really. Especially for the minimal amount of work and elapsed time from start to finish. A reasonable option for which you might well have most of the ingredients on hand, and for when want to have something warm on the table in less than an hour.