Spring Lentil Vegetable Soup with Herb Pistou
Green spring veggies are the star of the show in this easy lentil soup recipe, featuring leeks, peas, asparagus, and spinach. While the soup cooks you'll whip up an easy spring herb pistou, a garlicky sauce similar to pesto. Stirring a dollop of the pistou into each bowl of soup adds incredible fresh flavor with the bright flavors of spring in every bite!
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 324kcal
Equipment
Ingredients
For the Soup
- 1 cup green or brown lentils preferably pre-soaked (see notes)
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 leeks trimmed, sliced, and washed well (see notes)
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 4 cups chicken or vegetable broth preferably low-sodium or homemade, plus more if needed
- 1 cup fresh or frozen peas
- ½ lb. asparagus tough ends trimmed off and discarded, then cut into ½-1 inch pieces
- 5 oz. baby spinach and/or arugula optional: give it a rough chop before adding to the soup
- 1 ½ tablespoons fresh lemon juice remember to zest before juicing for pistou (below)
- salt and pepper to taste
For the Spring Herb Pistou
- ⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 clove garlic crushed
- 1 cup fresh mint, dill, chives, and/or cilantro see notes
- ½ teaspoon salt
- zest of one lemon
- pinch of crushed red pepper optional
- ½ tablespoon fresh lemon juice
Instructions
- Optional, but highly recommended: 30 minutes before beginning, place the 1 cup green or brown lentils in a bowl or container with ½ tablespoon of kosher salt and cover with warm water to allow to soak (this helps not only the texture of the lentils but also breaks down some of the indigestible fibers). You can also do this with cold water and store in the fridge for a longer time/overnight.
- Heat the 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil in a large heavy pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the 2 leeks (see notes on prepping and cleaning them) and sauté until softened, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes. Add the minced 2 cloves garlic and sauté for another 30 seconds or so, until the garlic becomes fragrant.
- Add the 4 cups chicken or vegetable broth and bring to a boil. If you soaked the lentils, drain and rinse well in a colander. Add the lentils to the soup, turn the heat to low, and cover and simmer for 20 minutes, or until lentils are fully cooked (if you chose not to soak, you may need more time and a bit more liquid). If the soup seems too thick, you can add more broth or water as needed.
- While the lentils cook, make the pistou. Add the crushed 1 clove garlic, 1 cup fresh mint, dill, chives, and/or cilantro, ½ teaspoon salt, the zest of one lemon, ½ tablespoon fresh lemon juice, and pinch of crushed red pepper (optional) to a food processor. Turn on until everything is well chopped. Then, drizzle the ⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil in while it's running, stopping to scrape down the side if needed. (Alternatively, you can do this with an immersion blender in a jar, go old-school and use a mortar and pestle, or just chop the herbs and mince the garlic by hand and mix everything up in a small bowl.)
- Stir in the 1 cup fresh or frozen peas, chopped ½ lb. asparagus, and 5 oz. baby spinach and/or arugula. Continue to heat on low for about 5 minutes, or until asparagus is cooked (but not mushy!). Turn off the heat and stir in the 1 ½ tablespoons fresh lemon juice. Taste and season with salt and pepper - the amount you need will depend on how much salt was in the broth you used. If the soup seems too thick, you can add some more broth or some water.
- Serve the soup with a dollop of the pistou in each bowl, preferably with a nice thick slice of crusty bread.
Notes
- To clean leeks, trim the dark green parts off as well as the bottom with the roots and discard. Slice lengthwise in half and then slice cross-wise into ½-inch pieces. Place in a bowl filled with water and give them a bit of a swirl to dislodge any dirt. Use a slotted spoon to scoop the leeks from the bowl into a colander - the dirt will sink to the bottom of the bowl. If they are particularly dirty, you can repeat this process with clean water. Otherwise, give them another generous rinse in the colander and proceed with the recipe.
- For the lentils, be sure not to use red lentils, as they cook differently and will disintegrate and not keep their shape.
- You can use canned lentils -in this case, drain and rinse them and add to the soup just after bringing to a boil along with the asparagus, peas, and spinach. Feel free to do this with other canned beans as well such as cannelini or chickpeas.
- For the herbs, feel free to use what you have. I used equal amounts of dill, mint, chives, and cilantro in the pistou. Herbs can get pricey and sometimes hard to find if you don't grow them yourself, so feel free to use what you have - just pick one or two of your favorites, or use other delicate fresh herbs like basil, parsley, tarragon, etc., depending on your preferences.
- Feel free to use other veggies, or omit some that you don't like. Add slow-cooking veggies to the pot with the lentils, such as carrots or potatoes. Add fast-cooking veggies that you don't want to overcook in at the end when you would add the asparagus and peas, such as broccoli, chopped kale, or cauliflower.
- This soup freezes really well. You can stir the remainder of the pistou into the soup before freezing to make things easier on yourself, or you can freeze it separately or make a new batch for when you defrost the soup later for a fresher taste.
- If you don't feel like making the pistou, that's fine! It really is special, but sometimes we want a shortcut. Just be sure to stir in some fresh chopped herbs to the soup at the end - this soup really needs herbs. I also recommend a little drizzle of olive oil in each bowl when serving.
- This soup is vegan / vegetarian as long as you use vegetable broth as the base.
- This recipe was inspired by the Spring Meadow Soup at The Abrothecary.
Nutrition
Calories: 324kcal | Carbohydrates: 31g | Protein: 13g | Fat: 18g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 12g | Sodium: 847mg | Potassium: 738mg | Fiber: 13g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 4036IU | Vitamin C: 39mg | Calcium: 97mg | Iron: 6mg