Soup & Co.

My mom and her long-time friend, Kelly, came for a visit to our home last Sunday afternoon. My family knows Kelly and her family from our oh-so beautiful days in the Florida sunshine. I have so many fond memories from that time in my life: Pool/beach-side fun; choreographed dances to the Grease soundtrack; Season passes to Disney World; delicious messes with my Easy Bake Oven; round-the-clock Barbie playing; Mariah Carey karaoke. And most of these memories included the company of my sister and Kelly's two daughters, Miranda and Lindsey. Yes, I might be biased, but I think we had the best childhood(s) of anyone I know.

Anyway, Kelly now lives in Wisconsin, and after 13 years she decided that enough was enough. She was coming to Pennsylvania to catch up with her very dear friend! And I am so glad she did. It was great seeing her again. She is just how I remembered her, and not much changed between her and my mom either. 

Once neighbors, they are still the 'peas-and-carrots' Kelly and Cheryl from Florida all those years ago. In fact, their bond seemed to only strengthen after all that time apart. Which is an incredibly heartwarming and amazing thing to witness/experience. But that's just how true, 'soul sistah' friendship roles...you can go a decade or so, and it's still just so effortless and fun and awesome (hoping for a 2012 reunion with a few extra familiar faces).

So, obviously when my mom said she wanted to bring Kelly out to the Fabin home, I was ecstatic. I wanted to give her a yummy, homey, countrified experience, minus the dirt. So I decided to take advantage of my recent soup kick and well, make us some soup! It's true, there's really nothing like the warmth felt from good company and a bowl full of soup...we had a wonderful afternoon.

Lentil Sausage Soup

The following is Ina Garten's recipe, with ground sausage instead of kielbasa. I saw her make this delicious, soupy creation on her show, Barefoot Contessa, last month, and it was a 'bowl' I knew I had to make. This is definitely some hearty soup- good for the soul. 

Ingredients

1 pound lentils

1/4 cup olive oil

3 large yellow onions, diced

2 leeks, chopped (white and light green parts only)

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tablespoon salt

1 1/2 teaspoons black pepper

1 tablespoon fresh thyme, minced

1 teaspoon ground cumin

8 stalks celery, medium diced

5 medium carrots, diced

3 quarts chicken stock

1/4 cup tomato paste

1 pound ground Italian sausage (I used hot)

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

Parmesan cheese 

Directions
In a large bowl, cover lentils with boiling water and allow to sit for 15 minutes, then drain.
Brown sausage in a medium-sized saute pan, drain the fat, and set aside.

In a large stockpot, over medium heat, heat the olive oil and saute the onions, leeks, garlic, salt, pepper, thyme and cumin for 20 minutes, until the vegetables are tender.
Add the celery and carrots and saute for another 10 minutes.
Add the stock, tomato paste and drained lentils, then cover, and bring to a boil.
Reduce the heat and simmer uncovered for 1 hour, until the lentils are cooked through.
Add the vinegar and sausage, and simmer until the sausage is hot.
Garnish with a drizzle of olive oil, parmesan cheese and thyme leaves.
Enjoy with good company!