When as a student I shared an apartment with my dearest flatmate Dorit, we used to be like a small family, inviting lots of people for the Friday dinner, feeding students with comforting soup, and feeling like this is the ultimate form of living. Now Dorit lives far away with her husband and 2 mini- Dorits. But each time she makes this soup, I know she would mention me and remember the wild days…

This recipe is a classic, and went through some transformations through the course of time. So, comforting red lentil soup – when you have it on a rainy day you may understand why Essav sold his birthright to Yaakov (Genesis 25:33).

For approx. 5L pot, you will need:

• 2 leeks (the white parts). If you don’t have leek you may substitute it with 2 big onions, chopped
• 2 medium carrots, peeled and chopped into medium pieces
• 1 Squash (courgette) (no need to peel it, the shell adds a lot to the final flavour
• 1 big potato, peeled and sliced into medium pieces
• 3-4 cloves of garlic
• 1.5 cups of red lentils
• Some oil or vegetable oil
• Salt, paper, and ground cumin

Let’s make it:

• Heat the pot, add a couple spoons of oil
• Add the leeks and the carrots until a little softened.
• Add the potato and the squash and cover with water up to 2/3 of the pot
• Let boil for about 15 minutes
• Add the lentils, boil for at least 25 minutes
• Add the garlic and boil for another 15 minutes
• Turn the gas off and let it cool a bit
• Blitz with a hand blender until smooth
• Add the spices (I add 2-3 tsp of salt, half a spoon of pepper and half a spoon of cumin)
• Boil for a few minutes

Bonapetite!