Lentils with Kale and Bacon

Lentils?! Kale?!  What the…. ?!  Oh, phew, it’s ok: Bacon. 

That, right there, folks, was my thought process while looking at this recipe.  This is another recipe that falls under the category of not-quite-sure-why-I tried-it, but also the sure-glad-I-did one.  Whooee, that was a lot of hyphens.  Onward.

If lentils aren’t the type of thing you make a lot, you’re kind of missing out.  And I can say that in a completely nonjudgmental way, because not so long ago, I didn’t make a lot of lentils either.  But they have so much going for them, and they’re just so dang versatile!  They’re filling, full of fiber and I’m sure some other vitamins and stuff I don’t even know about.  They’re also cheap, which is nice when you like to spend your grocery money on important things like bacon and ice cream. However, I’m definitely of the mind that something being cheap is not a particularly good reason to eat it.  And being healthy is nice, but healthy alone just isn’t gonna cut it.  But you know what?  Turns out they taste pretty good, too, especially when they’re cooked in a savory stew of garlic, bacon, veggies, and other good stuff.

I was admittedly a little nervous to serve this to my boys, between my three-year-old who, well, is three,  and my husband, who has told me before that he’s not a big fan of soup-like things for dinner. And you know, the kale, which tends to be a make-it-or-break-it proposition around here.  But we all really loved it.  I failed to get a picture of my small child shoveling heaping spoonfuls of lentils into his mouth, but I promise it actually happened. It’s more stew than soup, rich and filling.  The bacon and cumin make the whole dish perfectly smoky and warm, melding into the tomatoey sauce and giving a hint of some kind of bbq.  Studded with carrots and celery, it’s everything you want in a dish, and with a big hunk of crusty bread, a bowl of this is about as perfect as a cozy winter meal can get.

Lentils with Kale and Bacon

March 2, 2015

by but i'm hungry

Category Soups and Stews

adapted from Eating for England
I've made this a few times now, both with your run-of-the-mill lentils that you can buy in the big bags for a couple bucks, and also with the small, green Le Puy lentils, which are (obnoxiously) a bit pricier. Both were great, but if I'm being completely honest, the Le Puy lentils were better, and worth spending an extra buck or two.

Ingredients

• 6 slices bacon, chopped
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 3 carrots, diced
• 2 stalks of celery, diced
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 (5 oz) can tomato paste
• Salt and freshly cracked black pepper, to taste
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 8 cups of chicken broth
• 3 cups of lentils
• 1 bunch of kale, ribs removed and thinly sliced

Instructions

• Cook the bacon in a large dutch oven over medium heat. Once the bacon is cooked, remove and place on a paper towel.
• Remove all but 1-2 teaspoons of bacon grease from the pan then add the onion, carrots, garlic, and celery and sauté for 2-3 minutes. Add the tomato paste, salt, pepper, cumin, and crushed red pepper; stir and cook for 2-3 minutes. Add the chicken broth, cooked bacon, and lentils; stir, then cover and simmer for 1 hour.
• Add the fresh chopped kale and simmer for 5 minutes, then serve.

Tags

bacon,

carrots,

celery,

cumin,

Easy,

Healthy,

Kale,

lentils,

quick,

simple,

soup,

stew,

tomato paste

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