Hearty Italian Lentil Soup

SUBMITTED BY: Kristin

"You can change the recipe to suit your tastes; use your favorite jarred sauce if you don't have any homemade, or use your own family's meatball recipe!"

PREP TIME	15 Min
COOK TIME	1 Hr 30 Min
READY IN	1 Hr 45 Min

SERVINGS & SCALING

Original recipe yield: 8 servings

USMETRIC

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INGREDIENTS

1 cup lentils
1 1/3 quarts water, divided
2/3 cup uncooked long grain white rice
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 pound ground beef
1 egg, lightly beaten
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
3 tablespoons Italian bread crumbs
salt, to taste
ground black pepper, to taste
1 quart tomato sauce
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese for topping

READ REVIEWS (2)

DIRECTIONS

Place lentils in a pot with 3 cups water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, and cook 20 minutes or until tender. Drain and set aside.
Bring rice and 1 1/3 cup water to boil in a pot. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 20 minutes.
Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat. In a bowl, combine the ground beef, beaten egg, garlic, 1 tablespoon Parmesan cheese, parsley, bread crumbs, salt, and pepper. Form ground beef mixture into 1 inch balls. Place meatballs in skillet and cook 5 minutes or until evenly brown.
In a large pot, bring the tomato sauce and 4 cups water to a boil. Transfer the browned meatballs to the pot. Mix in cooked lentils and rice. Return to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer for 30 minutes. Sprinkle with remaining Parmesan cheese to serve.

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REVIEWS

Reviewed on Feb. 8, 2007 by Kristin

FYI - This recipe was completely overhauled from my original version. Keep in mind that this dish should be thick enough to almost hold a spoon up in it. I hope this version still does my recipe justice.

3 users found this review helpful

Reviewed on Mar. 5, 2007 by xezer

This was a terrific recipe for using up a lot of leftovers we had hanging around. I used some homemade meat sauce instead of the separate meatballs - and it turned out beautifully. Even our kids loved it. Beware, though - this makes a BIG pot!

2 users found this review helpful

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Recipe Submitter:

Kristin

	Cooking Level: Expert Home Town: Salem, New Hampshire, USA Living In: Norfolk, Virginia, USA
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NUTRITION INFORMATION

Servings Per Recipe: 8

Amount Per Serving

Calories: 332

Total Fat: 12g
Cholesterol: 64mg
Sodium: 946mg
Total Carbs: 36.4g
Dietary Fiber: 6.8g
Protein: 21g

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