Sweet Potato Soup with Lentils
Sweet Potato Soup with Lentils is a hearty, filling vegan soup that will warm you up this fall and winter. Vegetables, lentils, sweet potatoes and spices and simmered to create the perfect stew to pair with a crust piece of bread! This soup also freezes well for later.
Servings: 6
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 small sweet onion, diced
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 carrots, peeled and diced
- 2 celery ribs, diced
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika or sweet paprika
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon thyme
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1- 15 ounce can of diced tomatoes {you could sub in fire roasted diced tomatoes}
- 6 cups of vegetable broth or vegetable stock
- 3 whole bay leaves
- 1 cup dry red {or brown lentils}, rinsed and picked through
- 1 large sweet potato, peeled and cubed into small cubes
- 1 cup fresh spinach, packed
- 1/4 cup of fresh parsley chopped
Instructions
- In a large pot or dutch oven heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium high heat.
- Add the sweet onion and garlic and saute for 2 minutes.
- Add the carrot and celery and continue to saute for another 4 minutes.
- Add the paprika, oregano, cumin, thyme, salt and pepper and saute for another 3-4 minutes or until the spices bloom and become fragrant.
- Add the diced tomatoes, broth, bay leaves, lentils and sweet potato and stir well. Bring the stew to a low simmer and let simmer for another 30 minutes or until the lentils and sweet potato become tender, stirring occasionally.
- If you want some of the soup to be thinner you can pull half of it out and use an immersion blender to make half of the soup thinner and pour it back in.
- Stir in the spinach and fresh parsley and let the spinach wilt which takes about 3-4 minutes.
- Remove the bay leaf. Optional: you can puree half of the soup if you like a creamier texture using a blender or handheld immersion blender.
- Serve the soup warm with extra fresh parsley, crushed red pepper flakes, a lemon wedge and feta cheese or Greek yogurt {for non-vegan version}.
Notes
- Leftovers will keep well for about 4 days in the refrigerator, or can be frozen for several months in an airtight container.