Lentil Soup with Sausage

Makes 10 servings

A hearty soup to warm up a cold evening. For a spicier soup, use hot sausage instead of mild. For a lower fat version, use turkey or other lower-fat sausage.

ingredients

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1/2 pound Italian sausage
1 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 1/2 cups dried lentils, rinsed
6 cups beef, chicken, or vegetable stock
1 bay leaf
2 carrots, chopped
3 celery talks, chopped
2 x 14 1/2 ounce cans chopped tomatoes
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1/2 cup red wine (optional)
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon
salt to taste
chopped green onions and/or chopped fresh parsley for garnish

directions

Heat oil in a 4-quart pot over medium heat. Remove sausage from its casing and brown sausage for 10 minutes, breaking up meat with the back of a spoon. Stir in onion and garlic and saute’ for 10 minutes. Stir in lentils, stock, bay leaf, carrots, celery, tomatoes (including juice from can) and tomato paste. Bring soup to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 1 hours. Remove bay leaf and stir in wine, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, sugar and pepper, and simmer soup for 30 minutes. Taste soup and adjust salt and pepper if desired. Garnish bowls of soup with chopped green onion and/or chopped fresh parsley.

notes

Per serving: 197 calories, 11g protein, 8g fat, 20g, carbohydrate, 920mg sodium, 18mg cholesterol, Lower-sodium version: Use sodium free broth and reduce or omit sausage.

Source: Galen