Lentil Sweet Potato Soup

Lentil Sweet Potato Soup is a flavorful and hearty dish—perfect for fall or winter. When the cold winter months strike, soup and stews become go-to meals in my kitchen. Not only is soup a fairly easy meal to make, it’s also great for batch cooking. Make a large batch of soup, and save some for leftovers to enjoy throughout the week. Since soups often tastes best the second day, it makes for extra tasty leftovers too!

This Lentil Sweet Potato Soup is packed with vegetables and legumes— just the way I like it! Onions, celery, sweet potatoes, carrots, zucchini, tomatoes, and kale– a variety of colors, flavors, and textures to give this soup a nutritious and colorful profile. It’s flavored with some earthy tones, like thyme and sage. Toss in some nutritional yeast for some umami flavor or some crushed red pepper for a spicy kick. The lentils are great source of plant-based protein. Two cups of dried lentils in this soup makes for a hearty soup.

A few notes before you get started:

LENTILS: I prefer cooking the lentils on the side so they cook throughly without over cooking the sweet potatoes and veggies. If you want a one pot soup, feel free to add the dry lentils to the pot with the veggies. You’ll need to add extra water and cook the soup longer (until the lentils are tender).

POTATOES: Feel free to play with different variety of potatoes in this recipes. I just love sweet potatoes- but any potatoes could work!

BROTH: The soup will thicken as it sits. Feel free to add more water or a low-sodium/ salt-free veggie broth to thin it out.

LEFTOVERS: I love leftovers of this dish! I think it gets more flavorful as it sits. I leave the bayleaves in the leftover soup to allow the flavors to keep marinating and then remove them from my bowls I am dishing up. Feel free to do what works best for you!

Lentil Sweet Potato Soup

Ingredients:

2 cups uncooked green or brown lentils

1 medium red onion

2 cups chopped celery

2 cups diced carrots

2-3 medium Japanese or orange sweet potatoes (about 4 cups diced)

1/2 tablespoon garlic powder

1/2 tablespoon dried parsley

1/2 tablespoon dried thyme

1/2 tablespoon dried oregano

½ teaspoon of ground sage

½ teaspoon onion powder

3 cups chopped zucchini (about 2 medium)

2 cups diced tomato (about 3 on-the-vine tomatoes)

3 bay leaves

1 -2 tablespoon white miso paste

4-6 cups chopped kale

Black pepper, to taste

Method:

Rinse the lentils well. Add to a pot with 4 cups of water. Bring to a boil and lower heat. Cook until the lentils are soft, but not mushy.
Wash and chop the veggies.
Add the onions to a large pot with 1-2 tablespoons of water. Cook lightly and then add the celery and carrots. Cook until the onions start to become translucent and the veggies soften. Add in small amounts of water, as needed, to help keep the veggies from sticking to the pot.
Next add the sweet potatoes to the pot with the veggies. Sauté until the sweet potatoes start to soften a bit. Avoid overcooking though, as they will continue to cook when boiled with the soup.
Stir in the garlic powder, dried parsley, dried thyme, dried oregano, ground sage, and onion powder. Add 1-2 tablespoons of water, if needed. Let the seasonings cook lightly.
Add the zucchini and tomatoes to the pot with the veggies and cook lightly.
Add 5-6 cups of water, the cooked lentils, and 3 bay leaves to the pot. Bring the water to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer on low for 15-20 minutes.
Take a small portion of the broth and place it in a bowl. Stir in the white miso paste and then transfer the broth back to the pot with the soup. Stir in the chopped kale and add black pepper to taste. Allow the kale to wilt down. Remove the bay leaves before serving (see note for leftovers). Enjoy!