There’s something so comforting about a big pot of soup simmering on the stove on a cold day or when maybe you just need a little more comfort in your life. The first time that I posted this recipe was way back in 2007 when I started my blog. It’s now the year 2020 with my updated pictures and to tell you that I’m still making this wonderful soup.
This lentil soup can easily become a vegetarian version by using a vegetable broth base and eliminating the sausage, and believe me it’s just as good!
It’s hearty and filling and you really don’t need to serve anything else with it, unless you have a weakness for warm, crusty bread with butter like I do.
This lentil soup comes together quickly because it’s made with pantry ingredients, dried lentils that cook up quite fast and staples like carrot, onion and celery.
One ingredient that I think really enhances this soup is dried, ground fennel. If you have whole fennel seeds you can grind them down into a powdery consistency with a coffee grinder, put it in a little jar and save it.
Try it, I think you’ll love it, if not you can double up on the other spices, no problem! I always like to taste as I go along anyway I’m always adjusting for salt, pepper and spices.
Lentils tend to blow up a little and they really absorb flavors so don’t be shy, I’ll give you basic guidelines but make it your own.
Easy, hearty with delicious Italian flavors all throughout, this soup is a classic and will never ever go out of style!
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SAUSAGE AND LENTIL SOUP!!
This recipe can easily become vegetarian, by eliminating the sausage and using veggie broth
Author: Marie
Ingredients
- 1-1/2 cups dried, brown lentils, rinsed
- ½ lb. Italian sausage, bulk, precooked so you no longer see any pink
- 3 carrots, diced
- 1 onion, diced
- 3 celery stalks, diced
- 3 cloves crushed garlic
- 1- 14 oz. can of fire roasted tomatoes, or chopped tomatoes
- 1 quart broth, chicken or veggie + 1 cup water
- 1 teaspoon each of dried thyme, dried oregano and dried fennel
- pinch of red pepper flakes, optional
- salt and pepper to taste
- olive oil
- grated Parmigiano or romano for garnish
- NOTE; sometimes I add a few leaves of chopped swiss chard stirred into at the end but that is optional.
Instructions
- In a heavy bottomed pan drizzle with olive oil and add in the carrots, celery, garlic and onion.
- Toss in the cooked sausage.
- Saute til soft then sprinkle in all the spices mixing and coating everything well.
- Toss in the rinsed lentils, coating them with veggie mixture.
- Pour in the broth and water.
- Add the tomatoes.
- Bring it to a soft boil, then let it simmer until lentils soften.
- Taste for seasoning, adding more if needed.
- If lentils thicken the soup too much for you I always adjust with a little water or more broth to loosen it all, lentils tend to blow up.
- Feel free to double the recipe, it's that good!
- Garnish your bowl with a drizzle of olive oil on top and a sprinkling of grated cheese if you like.
I’m Marie, a wife, mother, mother-in-law, and gramma of two beautiful girls. My passion is food, clear and simple but especially Italian food, hence the name of my blog, Proud Italian Cook. I want you to feel right at home here so grab a cup of coffee, I’ll get the pastries, take a look around and enjoy your visit! {
An intriguing discussion is definitely worth comment.
I believe that you ought to write more about this subject,
it may not be a taboo subject but generally folks don’t speak about these issues.
To the next! Best wishes!!
I made the sausage lentil soup for my vegan daughter and her husband substituting TJ’s Italian non-meat sausage for the real stuff and using DePuy lentils. I had some leftover carrot/tomato salsa that I added as well. It was really good and I have found that your healthy recipes are easily swapped with vegan items and yet still retain their flavor. Keep those yummy recipes coming!
After my great success with your roasted tomato soup, (I just added some cayenne and 1/4 tsp of cloves from a previous recipe) I am going to give your lentil soup recipe a go today. I just love that I can come to my favorite Italian food blog and find what I want instead of some random recipe on the internet.
I like soups in winter, warming nourishing and usually make my own.
This one looks very thick and my kids like thick one too. It would be healthy too for them.
Welcome Francesca! Thanks for visiting!!
wow, this soup looks delicious SLURP 😛
Kevin, I’m confident you won’t have any problem at all!!!!!
pwforlife, Thanks for your support! I’d cook for the boys in blue anytime!!
Another Police Wife here supporting Queen V’s mom.
I am hungry now!
Do you ever cook for the boys in blue?
That soup looks pretty good. Lentils are something that I would like to use more but I do not seem to have much luck with them.
Lorraine, I’m sure you and the sweet MIL you have will come up with a bunch of things to make with lentils!!
Marie – this looks delicious, it’s soup all round in the blog world:) I’m all for convenience too if the quality is right, that’s what we sell basically! I don’t cook enough with lentils, it’s my winter resolution:)
Maryann, Hopefully you’ll get a Trader Joes soon, they seem to be popping up all over!
Jenren,Don’t stop! Keep coming!
Kate, I agree. Have you ever tried red lentils?
leomemorial,Thanks for visiting! please come again!
Passionate Palate, Trader Joes carries them all the time here in Chicago, give them a try, the quality is great!
lori lynn, I lve TJ’s they have such great products there, and the prices are great too!!
Marie – ha, it is so funny that I just posted a soup on my blog and showed a box of Trader Joe’s chicken stock too!
I made Minestrone because my sick friend requested it. I never made it before (and I am not Italian, but love to cook Italian) so I read a bunch of recipes and combined them into my own. I liked it and I hope it makes him feel better.
Your sausage and lentil soup sounds delicious!
I love the combination of lentils and sausage. Never knew about the pre-cooked lentils…great suggestion!
The soup looks very inviting. Perfect with some stale bread . Lentils just does it for me. Any way any style… i’ll have it !
I gotta stop coming to your blog–everytime I check it out it makes me soooo hungry
I wish we had a Trader Joes here. Yes, it’s def soup time and yours looks comforting.