Puy Lentil and Spinach Soup

Searching some inspiration online for a soup I could make with spinach, I came across this one from River Cottage (https://www.rivercottage.net/recipes/puy-lentil-and-spinach-soup). I love the heartiness of it. Of course I've added my own touch, which in this case was the addition of cumin powder and harissa powder! I think it would also be awesome with smoked paprika too.

Serves: 4 Preparation time: 10 minutes Cooking time: 40-45 minutes

Ingredients:

2 tbsp of olive oil 3 shallots, or 1 onion, finely chopped 1 carrot, finely chopped A few sprigs of thyme, leaves only, roughly chopped 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped 3 tomatoes, cored, de-seeded and diced 150g Puy lentils, rinsed 1.3 litres vegetable stock A small bunch of parsley, finely chopped 100g baby spinach/savoy spinach, chopped 1 tsp of ground cumin 1 tsp of harissa powder or smoked paprika Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Parmesan cheese (optional)

1. In a heavy bottom pan, heat the oil and add the onion, carrots and thyme. Sauté until the onions turn translucent. Add the garlic, tomatoes, cumin and harissa powder or smoked paprika and sauté for a another couple of minutes. 2. Add the lentils, stock and salt and pepper and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat to low and maintain a simmer for 25 minutes or so until the lentils are tender. 3. Add the parsley and spinach and simmer for another few minutes until the spinach is wilted. 4. Serve with grated parmesan and a hunk of bread.

To make it dairy free, sprinkle with almond powder instead of parmesan.