Sausage, swiss chard, and lentil soup

Final stretch of winter is upon us! Which means now's the time to fill your belly with as much soup as you can.

I absolutely love soup, but never make it enough during the winter. One reason is that I tend to focus more on main dishes, and my soup recipes got lost in the mix. Plus they're not often hearty enough, and the boy isn't a huge fan of making them the star of a meal.

The solution: this soup!

The lentils, sausage, swiss chard, and veggies result in a soup that hearty and meaty and filling and bursting with tons of flavor and textures. Serve this with a piece of crusty bread (and a glass of red wine!) and you're set for the night.

I would apologize for the lack of a cute photo, but I'm not going to for 2 main reasons:

1. This soup was too damn good, and eating took precedence over photographing this deliciousness!
2. I live in Chicago and the sun sets well before I even leave work, so there's 0% chance I have any kind of great lighting when cooking these days.

Yours in sharing delicious food and recipes, even if the pictures are a bit sub par,
Jacqueline

Sausage, swiss chard, and lentil soup, adapted from Smitten Kitchen

Note: Swiss chard can be replaced with kale if you prefer; if using kale discard the stems. You can also discard the swiss chard stems but they're a great addition, so I strongly recommend using them. Plus they're gorgeous if you use red chard.  

Serves 6

Ingredients

For the soup
2 TBSP olive oil
1 lb Italian sausage or sweet Italian sausage (or 2 large links with casings removed)
1 medium onion, diced
1 bunch swiss chard, ribbon the leaves (~6+ cups) and dice the stem 

2 celery stalks, diced
2 medium carrots, sliced into half-moons or diced
4 cloves garlic, diced

Pinch of crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
1 cup brown lentils, sorted and rinsed
2 bay leaves
1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
5 cups liquid of your choice, water and/or stock (I used 3 cups chicken stock + 1 cup beef stock + 1 cup water); add up to 1 cup more water depending on how thick you want the final soup
Kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

For the garlic oil finish (I didn't try this, but Smitten Kitchen says it makes the world of difference)
Heat 1/4 cup olive oil and 2 cloves of sliced garlic in a small skillet over medium heat until garlic softens and hisses.

Grated Pecorino Romano cheese to finish, optional

Directions

1. In a large pot or Dutch oven, heat olive oil over medium heat. When hot, add the sausage, breaking it up with a wooden spoon until it starts to brown, about five minutes. (It doesn't have to be cooked all the way through at this point.) Using slotted spoon, transfer sausage into medium bowl and set aside.
2. Add the onion, diced swiss chard stems, and pinch of salt and sauté for about 3-5 minutes, until slightly softened
3. Add celery, carrots, and a pinch of salt and continue to cook for another 5 minutes.
4. Add garlic and red pepper flakes (if using), and cook for 1 minute, until fragrant. 
5. Add the lentils, bay leaves, tomatoes, water/broth, reserved sausage, and salt/black pepper to taste. Bring to a simmer and allow to cook until the lentils are tender, about 40 minutes. (Add more water if your soup is getting too thick during the cooking process).
6. Once the lentils are cooked, discard the bay leaves. (You want to do this before adding the swiss chard because otherwise you'll never find them!)
7. Add the chard and cook until the leaves are tender, about 1 minute or to taste.  
8. To finish, divide soup among bowls, and drizzle with the garlic oil finish (see above). Top with fresh Romano. Leftovers will keep for several days in the fridge.