Easy Carrot and Lentil Soup with Toasted Bread

Enjoy this easy Carrot and Lentil Soup recipe. A tasty vegan soup ideal for cold days, made with simple ingredients and served with a base of sourdough bread. Quick to make, it's simmered to perfection for a warm, satisfying meal!

Course Main Course

Cuisine Italian

Diet Vegan, Vegetarian

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 35

Servings people

Calories 531kcal

Author Pina Bresciani

Ingredients

3 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil plus more for drizzling
1 cup white or yellow onion diced
1.5 cups carrots diced
1 cup celery diced
1.5 cups dry lentils
2 bay leaves
4 cups vegetable stock
salt and pepper to taste
parsley for garnish
chili flakes (optional)
6 slices sourdough bread (optional)

Instructions

Place lentils in a bowl and cover with cold water. Let them soak for 2-4 hours. This will help them cook more quickly.
Once lentils are soaked, drain them with a colander. Set aside.
In a large pot, over medium heat, add olive oil. Once olive oil is heated through, add onion, carrots and celery. Season with salt and pepper.
Let them cook until tender, about 5 minutes.
Add the lentils to the pot, along with the bay leaves.
Give everything a good stir, and add the vegetable stock - start with 3 cups, and add more if needed.
Let lentils simmer until they are cooked. This can take anywhere from 15-40 minutes, depending on the lentils you are using.
If you run out of vegetable stock and need more, you can add water. Season with salt and pepper.
Optional step - toast the sliced bread in the oven at 400F for approximately 15 minutes, or until hard. You want the bread to be hard, because it will be softened by the soup.
Place the toasted bread at the bottom of a soup bowl. Drizzle bread with olive oil and chili flakes.
Top the bread with the lentil soup. The bread will absorb the soup and become soft.
Top the soup with more olive oil and chopped parsley. Enjoy!

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