Perfect As A Soup, Even Better As A Sauce
"This is one of my favorite fall soup recipes. It's easy to make and tastes great."
I found it in a cookbook called "Please to the Table" that specializes in Russian Food. It may just be the one recipe we make from this very interesting cookbook and that will have to change soon but I know if my wife grabs it, we are going to have red lentil & apricot soup.
This soup is great on it's own, but it works very well as a sauce too. In the fall when I lived in New York City, there was this little pasta store on 8th Avenue and they would make pumpkin raviolis only at this time of year.
This sauce with pumpkin raviolis was a perfect match but I've tried it with pork tenderloin, dark meat chicken and most recently with butternut squash triangoli.
Reluctant Gourmet’s Tip :
Using a hand blender to puree the soup in step 4 is easier than transferring to a food processor.
Red Lentil and Apricot Soup Recipe
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 large onion chopped
- 2 cloves garlic chopped
- ⅓ cup dried apricots chopped
- 1½ cup dried split red lentils rinsed
- 5 cups chicken stock
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 3 ripe plum tomatoes peeled, seeded and chopped
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Chop the garlic & onions.
- Rinse the red lentils being sure to remove any small pebbles.
- Peel, seed & chop the plum tomatoes.You are ready to start cooking this wonderful soup.
- In a large soup pot, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, and dried apricots. Sauté until the onion is translucent, about 12 minutes.
- Add the lentils to the chicken stock. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer, covered, until the lentils are tender, about 30 minutes.
- Stir in tomatoes, cumin, thyme, and salt and pepper. Simmer, covered for another 10 minutes.
- Remove half the soup and puree it in a food processor or blender.
- Return the puree to the pot and season with the lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste.
- Simmer for another 2 to three minutes and serve.
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