Vegan (or not) Red Lentil Soup

Love this recipe Via Debbie Passey via online somewheres. As usual I will put my modifications in parenthesis.

1 TBS peanut oil (or EVOO or anything you have except veggie or canola oil ;) but you only need it if you do it the non lazy way)

1 Onion

1 TBS fresh ginger root (or powdered ginger)

1 Clove garlic

1 pinch fenugreek seeds (or powdered)

1 cup dry red lentils ( I soak overnight with an acid like whey, apple cider vinegar or lemon juice. Don't forget to rinse and drain after soaking...duh!)

1 Cup cubed butternut squash ( I always use 1/2 cup more)

1/3 Cup cilantro (I didn't have any yesterday and it still tasted good)

2 Cups water (this is where the vegan part becomes the or not part. I use chicken stock, it tastes much better. Especially when you make it from scratch which is SOO easy. I will do another post on it.)

1/2 (14 oz) can coconut milk

2 TBS tomato paste

1 tsp curry powder

1 pinch cayenne pepper

1 pinch ground nutmeg

salt and pepper to taste

If you are lazy like me you can just throw it all in the crock pot for a few hours or follow the directions below:

1. heat oil in a large pot over medium heat and cook the onion, ginger, garlic, and fenugreek until onion is tender

2. Mix the lentils, squash, and cilantro in to the pot. Stir in the water, coconut milk, and tomato paste. Season with curry, cayenne, nutmeg, salt and pepper. Bring to a bolil, reduce heat to low, and simmer 30 min or until lentils and squash are tender.

I like my throw it all in way better as it is much less time consuming.

Enjoy!!