Quick and Easy Fall Lentil Cream Soup

Here are the cold days of fall. It gets dark really early and my biological clock is thinking it is time for bed at 5pm. That's why I am getting really lazy these days and cooking after work is not something I want to do as I am very tired. Recently my slow cooker is being my best friend as it cooks while I sleep. To be honest I wanted one for a very long time and recently my lovely mum bought me one as a present. I am still learning how to use it, especially as it is smaller than my usual pots, but it is doing fantastic job. I am saying all that because today's recipe is perfect for both cooking on the stove in a pot or in a slow cooker over night. We are blending it anyways (I just love anything creamy) and don't have to worry about overcooking anything.

What's the best for this recipe however is that it is full of fibers and it keeps you full for longer. The lentils that we use are the brown kind, with the skin on, which makes it hearty. You can use the red lentils if you wish, but they will not make it as thick and creamy, plus the red lentils are skinned, so you don't get as much fiber. This means that you will be hungry shortly after eating it. One more good thing for the soup is that you don't need to put any fat in it if you are a clean eater. I personally try to avoid it wherever possible just to keep myself healthy.

Here's what you'll need 

2 cups of brown lentil
1 carrot
1 head of onion
1-2 green peppers (I prefer Severe peppers)
3 -4 cloves of garlic (I put even more, but if you don't like it use less)
1 small diced tomato
cooking cream or sour cream (this is optional)
paprika
savory (or oregano)
salt
pepper
vegetable oil

In a pot on the stove put your oil,  washed lentil, graded carrot, chopped onion and pepper. You want all vegetables finely chopped, so they will cook faster. Cover everything with water., The amount here depends on how thick you want your soup. I like it on the thicker side, so I put less water, like 2 -3 cm above the ingredients. Bring it to boil and let it cook until the lentils are almost done. Then add your spices, and tomato and let it cook for about 5 - 10 min, or until everything is perfectly tender. Turn off your heat and add your garlic, that's been chopped into medium sized pieces. Let everything rest for about 5 min. Give it a taste to make sure it's salty enough. Then it is time to blend it. Use a blender or an emergent blender to do so. Be careful when blending hot soups, because you might burn yourself. When everything is blended stir in some cream of choice as it makes the soup very nice and rich. The soup on the stove comes together in about 40 min.

But you can make it is a slow cooker as well. Simply add all your ingredients, but the tomato, garlic and cream, in the cooker.Keep in mind that the water in the slow cooker will not evaporate, so you might want to put less of it. Leave over night on low, or for about 3 hours on high. Then put your tomato and leave it for 30 more minutes, then turn the heath off , add your garlic and let it rest for 5 - 10 min, so the garlic can "awake". That is it. All you have to do now is to blend it, add cream and serve it.

I like to serve mine with some cheese and garlic on top, as on the picture, but it is also very nice with croutons.

This is the perfect fall soup, full of healthy ingredients, affordable, quick and easy. You can leave it in the fridge for 3 - 5 days,or even freeze it. If you are vegan, feel free to leave the cream out, or substitute it with a boiled potato.