Today we do another lovely soup, really perfect for winter, a lentil soup. Lentils are so versatile, they can really be used in so many dishes and apart from tasting really good, they are extremely healthy, just ask any vegetarian or Vegan what they think about lentils.
To just make the soup a little different I made some rabbit sausages, cooked a bit Puy Lentils and then a little bit Chinese Cabbage.
The Puy Lentils are one of the best Lentils available on the market, they are rich and flavorful and very dark in color. They get their name from the French city of Puy, where they were originally grown and are still a driving industry. The name is protected and the lentils are sold under the AOC label, meaning Appelation d'origine controlee, a fancy French term saying that they are under controlled production from a certain, clearly demarcated area. The special flavor of the lentils is because they are grown in the volcanic soil of the Auvergne region. So if you see them in a shop, get them and try them out
The rabbit sausage is not a real sausage, I just took the back of a rabbit, deboned it carefully so I have the fillet and the skin nicely together. Then I took a bit leg meat and made a farce, or filling with a little cream, salt, pepper and liver. I added a bit sundried tomatoes to give it a nice color. I added a bit farce next to the fillet and simply rolled it so that the skin is all around. Then I tied the sausage and roasted it in a pan and finished it off in the oven.
Sounds labor intensive? Yes it is and you really don't have to do it, just simply make the soup, and then make the sun dried tomatoes, lentils and Chinese cabbage as a garnish.
So here is the recipe for the soup, if you want to have an exact recipe for the rabbit sausage, let me know and I will happily part with it
Recipe
250 g (9 oz) Puy Lentils
150 g (5 oz) Onions
50 g (2 oz) Garlic
25 ml (1 oz) Olive oil
1.2 l (1.2 quart) Chicken or Vegetable stock
250 ml (9 oz) Cream
Salt, Pepper
50 g (2 oz) Puy Lentils
50 g (2 oz) Onions
50 g (2 oz) Carrots
25 ml (1 oz) Balsamic Vinegar
25 ml (1 oz) Olive oil
1 head Chinese Cabbage
25 ml (1 oz) Olive oil
Salt, Pepper
Method
Cut the onions and garlic in fine dices, then saute together with the lentils in the olive oil, without color
Add either chicken or vegetable stock and simmer till the lentils are very soft
Blend the soup quickly, but don't strain it, you want a bit texture in the soup
Add the soup back in the pot and add the cream
This soup is very versatile, if you are vegan then you just leave the cream away
Season to taste, if the soup is a little too thick, just add some more stock
Cut the onions and carrots in brunoise, blanch
Saute the lentils
Add stock and balsamic vinegar
Simmer till tender
Mix with the blanched vegetables, you should have no stock left
Cut the Chinese Cabbage and just saute quick in bi olive oil
Season to taste
No comments:
Post a Comment