Thick vegetable and lentil soup with a cheesy topping
Ingredients:
250g red split lentils, rinsed
2 large onions peeled, chopped into quarters
3 large carrots peeled, roughly chopped
2 bay leaves
4 cups reduced salt chicken or vegetable stock
3/4 cup boiling water
1 large head of broccoli
50g cheese, grated
3 tsp dried dill or 2 tbsp of fresh dill (chopped) – Fresh dill to serve
How to make it:
In a large sauce pan put the lentils, onions, carrots, bay leaves, stock and water. Bring to the boil and then reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer for 30 minutes until the vegetables are very soft and the lentils are well cooked. Be sure to check the pan every few minutes and stir to avoid the lentils from sticking and burning on the bottom of the pan. Add a little extra water if needed.
Remove the bay leaves from the soup
Remove the florets from the broccoli. Trim the tough outer edges of the broccoli stalk and discard, keep the soft inner flesh – add this with the florets into the saucepan and simmer for a further 10 minutes
Take the pan off the heat and blend the mixture Use jug on top of Kenwood Chef
Stir the dill through the soup, pour into bowls and top with grated cheese.