Red Lentil & Artichoke Stew

Halfway through lunch I realized that I had forgotten to take a picture...



So I pulled out my camera. I thought I could do it. How hard could it be to snap a photo between bites?



Harder than I thought. This soup was too good, I tell ya!

You will have the same reaction, too. This red lentil artichoke stew is definitely where it's at! The biggest surprise? I used NO salt or curry powder, my two favorite condiments! I know, I was a bit skeptical, lol!

I found this soup while searching for ingredients and flavors besides my old standbyes. I wasn’t sure how to pull off Italian with no cheese, and whole grain pasta is wholly unappealing…So, clickety click click, I entered the ingredients I had on hand (red lentils, duh) and those I wanted to play with (artichokes and olives). Ta-da! Red lentil artichoke stew!

Lots of people refer to the Vegan Table for this recipe but I based mine off of this one here.

The Goods
1 cup diced yellow onion
2-3 teaspoons minced garlic
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 cup dry red lentils
1 bay leaf
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 16-ounce can chopped tomatoes
1-15-ounce jar artichoke hearts, drained)
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
black olives, sliced

Saute onions til golden. Add the garlic, cumin, and coriander and cook for 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the lentils, bay leaf, lemon juice, tomatoes and tomato liquid, artichoke hearts (and some juice but not all of it), and crushed red pepper and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for about 20 minutes or until the lentils are tender. Add water (or veggie broth) if stew becomes too thick. Remove the bay leaf. Serve alone or over rice or pasta. (I served mine over brown rice that I embellished with bell peppers and onion.)

Savory and simple! Two spoons up!