Pseudo Sophisticated French Lentil Soup

I call this soup pseudo-sophisticated because of how gourmet it tastes, even though it is one of the easiest things to make. It's a true staple for me because I make it at least once every two months and I hardly ever tire of it. I have tried other lentil soups but I always come back to this one. Give it go, why don't you?



Ingredients:  
1 large onion, diced
1 stalk celery, chopped
1 medium carrot, chopped
6 cloves garlic, smashed
2 bay leaves
4 ounces (about 1/2 cup) tomato paste
1 1/2 cup red wine
16 oz. dried lentils, sorted and rinsed (about 2 cups...french green lentils work well here as they do not tend to get as mushy as other types)
6 cup vegetable broth
1 tablespoon dried thyme
2 tablespoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
pepper to taste
optional: chopped spinach (frozen or fresh)

Directions:
1.) Heat up 3 tablespoons of oil in a large soup pan and put on over medium-high heat. Add onions and celery and carrot. Saute until they start to take on color. Add bay leaves and garlic. After two minutes (or if the garlic starts to burn) work in the tomato paste and add the wine. Reduce by three-quarters.


2.) Add the lentils and enough broth to cover with a couple inches of liquid. Simmer uncovered, periodically stirring and adding enough broth (or water, if you run out of broth) to cover.


3.) The soup should cook for about 40 minutes or until the lentils are tender. Add enough water for your desired consistency. Add a couple tablespoons of crushed thyme or oregano, and season to taste with pepper. If your broth is sodium-free you can add salt, but be careful- a lot of vegetable broth contain a lot of salt! Stir in a heaping spoonful of Dijon mustard into the bowl you're about to eat it in and serve immediately.

This is good to pair with some barley, rice, or quinoa for complete protein. Or, maybe just a big hunk of crusty bread.

Number of Servings: 8ish