Brothy Lentil, Sausage and Farfalle Soup

Take that name to mean anything you please … whether you make this soup out of chicken stock, turkey stock or vegetable stock, you can bet it’ll be scrumptious. What elevates this above a standard chicken (turkey … veggie) noodle soup are the copious amounts of carrots and celery, the beefy lentils, and the fun little topping of sauteed root veggies and sausage. PS – you can make this vegetarian and still have a super hearty soup.

1 quart chicken, turkey or veggie stock
1 onion, peeled and sliced lengthwise into 1/2-inch wedges
6 medium carrots, peeled and cut on a bias into 1-inch pieces
5 celery stalks, cut on a bias into 1-inch pieces
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
2 turnips, peeled and cut into a 1/2-inch dice (want to see a video of how to dice? Click here)
1 rutabaga, peeled and cut into a 1/2-inch dice
6 ounces loose Italian pork or chicken sausage
Sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1-1/2 cups sprouted lentils (or regular green lentils cooked until just tender)
2 cups cooked farfalle pasta (cooked 2 minutes less than instructed cooking time)
1 cup shredded chicken or turkey (optional)

In a large pot, bring stock, onion, carrots and celery up to a boil. Lower heat and simmer for 20 minutes.

While stock is simmering, heat olive oil in a large saute pan over medium-high heat and swirl to coat. Add turnips, rutabaga and sausage to the pan and toss to coat with olive oil. Saute, turning occasionally and breaking up the sausage with a stiff spatula, for 12-15 minutes, until vegetables are browned on the outside and tender throughout. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Add the lentils, pasta and turkey to the soup pot and simmer for 3 minutes.

Serve each bowl of soup topped with a generous heap of root veggies and sausage.

Serves 6-8

Note: It’s super easy to make this soup vegetarian, and with the pasta and lentils, it’s still quite hearty. Just use veggie broth and omit the sausage and shredded meat.