Tomato Lentil Soup - The Veggie Table

This hearty, herby soup is delicious fresh, and even better the next day.
Yield	8 servings
Time	1 hour
Tools	knife or food processor Dutch oven or large stock pot wooden spoon small bowl rubber spatula
Ingredients	1 T olive oil 1 c onion, minced 2 cloves garlic, minced 4 c vegetable stock ⅔ c brown lentils, rinsed 2 carrots, minced 2 stalks celery, minced 1 bay leaf 6 oz tomato paste ¼ c fresh parsley, minced 1 T thyme, minced 1 T dill, minced 1 T tarragon, minced 1 t marjoram, minced ½ t pepper ½ t salt 28 oz tomatoes, chopped (with juice)
Directions	Heat oil over medium heat, add onion and garlic, and sauté, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes, until translucent. Increase to high heat, and add stock, lentils, carrots, celery, and bay leaf. Bring to boil, then cover pan and reduce heat. Simmer, stirring occasionally, for about 45 minutes, until everything is tender. Meanwhile, combine tomato paste, herbs, and spices, and set aside. Discard bay leaf. Add a cup of soup into the tomato paste mixture and stir until smooth, then add this back into the soup, along with the tomatoes. Heat through, taste, and adjust seasoning.
Notes	An easy way to deal with the onion, garlic, carrots, and celery is to just toss them all in the food processor and pulse until minced. The amounts given for herbs assume you are using fresh herbs (which are much better for this recipe). If you use dried herbs, use a third as much (i.e, instead of 1 T fresh use 1 t dried). Adapted from A Beautiful Bowl of Soup: The best vegetarian recipes, by Paulette Mitchell. Buy it: Amazon.com \| Amazon.co.uk
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