summer time means I get to obsess about food :)

lentil soup....with sweet potatoes, carrots, avocado and lime....

summer time. now is the time i get to wake up...NOT GO TO SCHOOOL :) and say to my self over a nice cup o' joe (made by joe...with love) what am i going to make for dinnah? hmmmmmm? today there wasn't much laying around so i opted for good ol' lentil soup.

.....but i jazzed it up a bit. made it fancy. yeah. it's summer.

here's the spiel (sheesh. jess. why can you spell so good? hmmm?)

this is a sloooow cooker recipe...i am very fond of these things.

10 cups of water
1 16 oz bag of dried lentils
2 tablespoons of ground coriander
maybe a titch of thyme and oregano...ok not "maybe", just do it.

veggies! today i added sweet potato, celery, carrots and chopped spinach...you can do any veggies you have around the house. sometimes i don't have any, so i go strait lentils and maybe, if you wanted, a couple cubes of veggie bullion...but totally not necessary.

put all that stuff mentioned above in the slow cooker on low for like 6 or 7 hours
or high for 4-ish hours 

ok. now that the lentils are all soft like butter...

get a little pan, add a few tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil and heat it up.

add to oil:
1/2 teaspoon hing.....("asofoetida powder" indian spice found at indian or world markets.....or just onion or garlic...but seriously... the hing has a unique flavor that is delicious and keeps people guessing :)
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

fry up the spices and dump into the soup!

add:
2 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon brown sugar
1 table spoon fresh lemon juice
1 small can of tomato paste

let simmer for a bit...

time to eat!

top with avocado, cilantro, lime, salt and pepper....maybe serve over rice...maybe a scoop of sour cream....or nothing. your choice.