Cabbage + Sweet Potato Lentil Soup

Soup is my winter life force. I consider it appropriate for every meal during the cold, dark months. It’s nourishing, warming, and all-purpose. You can literally make soup out of most anything you have on hand. I call this a “soup-er power” because I love lame jokes and brothy goodness. This Cabbage + Sweet Potato Lentil Soup is a perfect winter staple, using seasonal picks lurking in the bottom of the crisper drawer. The remains of some sweet savoy cabbage contrasted with dark kale greens are perfect with thin onion slices and hearty sweet potatoes. (I always keep the skins on, just wash well!)

Lentils are one of the best soup legumes as they don’t require pre-soaking. If you’re like me and forgot to soak the white beans overnight it’s red lentils to the rescue! This is a versatile recipe, feel free to add in any greens you might want to use up! That’s the power of soup – no one else is going to know if a vegetable was not supposed to go in there. This soup was made with our vegetable stock from scratch, which is a simple recipe you can make ahead of time and keep on hand or right before you make the rest of the soup. For this version I made mine right before and let simmer for 45 minutes.

Cabbage + Sweet Potato Lentil Soup

A cozy winter soup perfect for using up leftover winter produce!

INGREDIENTS

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 6 cups vegetable stock (see vegetable stock from scratch recipe above)
• 1/4 onion, sliced thinly
• 2 cloves garlic, diced
• 1 - 1 ½ large sweet potato, cubes (skins on)
• 1/2 cup red lentils (make sure to rinse before use)
• 2 crimini (or similar) mushrooms, sliced thinly
• 2 cups approx of chopped cabbage
• 1/2 cup approx of chopped kale
• 1 tbsp nutritional yeast
• 1 tbsp white vinegar
• Salt to taste
• Lemon to taste

TO-DO'S

1. Prep all vegetables. Heat large stockpot on stove and once hot add olive oil. To olive oil add onion, garlic, and sweet potatoes and stir continuously for 4 - 5 minutes or until onions soften up.

2. Add vegetable stock and red lentils and bring to boil. Let simmer for 15 - 20 minutes or until sweet potatoes are soft.

3. Add mushrooms, cabbage, and kale and stir. Let simmer for 3 - 5 minutes or until cabbage begins to wilt. Turn off heat. 

4. Stir in nutritional yeast, white vinegar, and salt to taste if needed. Add lemon.

5. Serve hot and enjoy! This pairs well with bread in a giant mug. Will keep about 1 - 1 ½ weeks in the fridge or about 1 - 2 months in the freezer. If freezing in a glass container make sure to leave 1 inch of head space.

Let us know if you give this a go! We all need more soup in our lives. #closedloopcooking

Stay hungry,
Hawnuh Lee
Closed-Loop Cooking