Sausage and Lentil Soup

Aubergine910's Note:

I found this in an old Good Housekeeping Magazine (Dec. 2005) in my Dr. waiting room. We love it and it freezes beautifully. You can sub turkey Italian sausage for the regular. Don't skimp on the fennel, it makes the dish. I also disregard the amounts of salt and pepper and just season to taste (it does need a bit more salt than stated in recipe).

• Total Time: 1 hrs 25 mins
• Prep Time: 25 mins
• Cook Time: 1 hrs

Ingredients:

Serves: 8-10

Yield: 18.5 cups

• 1 lb sweet Italian sausage , links
• 1 (1 lb) bag carrot , cut lengthwise in half, then crosswise into 1/4-inch slices
• 1 large onion , chopped
• 1 medium fennel bulb , trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces
• 4 garlic cloves , crushed
• 1 (16 ounce) bag lentils , rinsed and picked through
• 6 cups water
• 1 (32 ounce) carton chicken broth (4 cups)
• 1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes with juice
• ½ teaspoon thyme
• ¾ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper , coarsely ground

Directions:

1. heat 8 qt saucepot over medium heat until hot. With fork, prick sausages in a few places; add to saucepot. Cook sausages 10 - 15 min or until browned, turning occasionally. Remove to plate.
2. To sausage drippings in saucepot, add carrots, onions, and fennel. Cook over med-high heat about 10 min or until tender and lightly browned, stirring frequently. Stir in garlic; cook 1 min.
3. Add lentils, water, chicken broth, tomatoes with their juice, thyme, salt and pepper to veggies in saucepot; heat to boiling over high heat. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer 30 min, stirring occasionally.
4. Cut sausage into 1/2" thick slices; stir into soup. Heat soup to boiling over high heat. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer 15 - 20 min longer or until lentils are tender, stirring occasionally. Skim off any fat and discard.

Reviews

[macera44]

FANTASTIC! hit the spot on this cold winter day!!

[keray50]

Very tasty! I used turkey sausage and reduced sodium chicken broth to bring down the sodium content. Have made this a few times now and it has become a family favorite.