Simple Lentil, Pumpkin and Kale Soup
After an inspiring, but exhausting weekend away at a food blogging conference in Toronto, I returned home to a bare refrigerator and a rather chilly kitchen.
My days in the city had been spent with dear friends who are also hard core foodies, eating around at various hotspots each afternoon and feasting far into the night at our private events.
While I highly recommend shops like Nugateau and Forno Cultura, and can’t wait to return to Bar Ravel, the weekend left me longing to cook something comforting over my own stove, but what to make from the pantry stores?
Fortunately, I still have a thriving patch of kale growing in the garden and so I gathered a generous bunch, along with a handful of fresh thyme.
I had a soup in mind, from my friend Allison’s beautiful new cookbook, Purely Pumpkin, knowing that I had a row of pumpkins on the front porch from recent outing to the pumpkin patch at a Quinn Farm. I always keep lentils in the pantry and broth in the freezer, and thus the ingredients for a simple, autumnal soup were amassed on my counter.
The Simple Lentil, Pumpkin and Kale Soup came together in under an hour, and that included hacking up a small pie pumpkin and the garden trip. Not only did the soup warm up my tummy and invigorate me to take on my tremendous to-do list, it warmed up my kitchen and introduced an inviting aroma to the whole house. Mission accomplished.
Definitely pick up a copy of Allison’s cookbook Purely Pumpkin in your local bookstore or find it on Amazon (USA) or Indigo (Canada). It’s an absolutely hunger-inducing cookbook, with creative, yet simple recipes. I’ve bookmarked quite a few to try, including the Pumpkin Spice London Fog, Pumpkin Gnocci with Mint and Garlic, and the Pumpkin Ginger Bread with Dark Chocolate and Coconut. Hungry yet?
Simple is best, especially when ingredients like pumpkin and kale are at their peak. Sure, pumpkin is delicious in desserts like pie and cheesecake swirl brownies, but is also exceptionally good in earthy, savoury dishes like today’s soup.
Take advantage of the abundance of cheap and plentiful pumpkins around at this time of the year and simmer a pot of this soup for a quick weeknight supper or a leisurely weekend lunch. And if you’re looking for another savoury pumpkin dish, try my Coconut Curried Pumpkin with Cinnamon Rice for a nourishing and spicy supper.
Simple Lentil, Pumpkin and Kale Soup
Ingredients
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil extra virgin
- 1 medium onion diced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 pound raw pumpkin peeled, seeded and cut into 1-inch pieces
- 2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves
- 4 cups vegetable stock or water
- 3/4 cup dried du Puy lentils or brown lentils
- 1 1/2 teaspoons fine sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 4 packed cups shredded kale
- 1 Tablespoon red wine vinegar
- additional fresh thyme and pepitas to garnish - optional
Instructions
- In a large pot, heat olive oil gently over medium heat. Add the diced onion and saute, stirring occasionally for 2 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for an additional minute.
- Tip in the chunked pumpkin and the thyme leaves. Cook with the onion for about a minute, then pour in all of the stock.
- Rinse the lentils in a fine sieve under cold running water, then add them to the pot. Sprinkle in the salt and pepper. Bring the soup up to a boil over high heat, then reduce heat to medium-low.
- Simmer soup for 25-30 minutes, or until the pumpkin is tender and the lentils are cooked.
- Add the kale all at once, stirring well to submerge it in the broth. Pour in the vinegar. Cook the soup for another minute or two to wilt the kale. Then taste for seasoning and adjust if necessary.
- Ladle the soup into bowls and garnish with a sprinkling of thyme leaves, pepitas and a drizzle of olive oil.
Notes
Nutrition
Aimée! Thank you for your kind words about Purely Pumpkin and for this beautiful(!!!) take on the lentil soup. And I cannot wait to make those brownies – likely this weekend for Halloween! xo
You inspired me to take pumpkin in many directions, so thank YOU! Happy brownie baking.
I’ve been wanting an inspiration to make something different for the blog. That is using an orange vegetable. Shame on me I have nothing orange so far. This looks wonderful. Hubby would love it. Have a wonderful week, thank you for sharing.
I hope you enjoy, Marisa.
Isn’t Toranna great? It’s so close to us that I sometimes take it for granted, so it’s nice to see it through someone else’s lens. We’re just back from Philly which, too, has a fun food scene – highly recommend it! Thanks for the warming recipe. It looks like snow today… (PS We love Purely Pumpkin, too!)
You know, I love Toronto. Have not been to Philly yet!
I made this for supper last night. It was delicious!
Amber, that is awesome. Thank you for returning and letting me know. Cheers!
880 calories per serving or for the whole pot?