It’s January already, a New Year, that time when many of us feel an urge to try to do things just a little bit better. More exercise maybe? – or take up a new hobby – be nicer to the kids/spouse/parents – and we’re definitely going to eat more healthily. No coincidence then that it’s also Veganuary!
Whether you’re tempted by the full Veganuary challenge, or you just want to freshen up your cooking, switching to a more plant-based diet is never a bad thing. Good for your health, good for your carbon footprint, and January is a great time to start that new habit.
We’ll be sharing tips for those new to Vegan cookery plus recipe suggestions throughout January. And here’s an easy-peasy one to start! Pasta e Lenticchie is one of the most delicious soups in the Italian hearty soup canon. Filling, simple, cheap and you can chuck in any veg you need to use up.
Pasta e Lenticchie soup

Ingredients
2 tbsps Olive Oil
1 Onion, diced
1 Carrot, diced (plus other veg if you like eg parsnip, kale)
2 Celery Sticks, diced
2 Cloves of Garlic, sliced
2 Bay Leaves
125g Passata
250g Dried Whole Lentils, rinsed – or a couple of tins of beans eg chickpeas, haricot beans, from the back of the cupboard
350g any Small Pasta such as Orzo – or chop up whatever pasta you have to hand
1.5l Vegetable Stock
Method
Sweat down your onion, carrot and celery on a medium heat, with the olive oil.
After the veg has been softening for about 10 minutes add in the garlic and fry for a minute before stirring in the lentils, bay, passata and stock.
Bring to a simmer and cook gently covered for 20 minutes, until the lentils are just starting to get tender but holding their shape.
Season well, add in the pasta and simmer for another 10 - 12 minutes or so until it is cooked. The lentils should be soft and giving by this point too.
Serve with grated vegan cheese and lovely chunky bread.
This recipe is from the great selection on the HodmeDod website.
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