Lentil and Spinach 'Stoup' With Pasta and Pesto

A community recipe by ChrisHammer1971

Not tested or verified by Nigella.com

Introduction

More than a soup...Rachael inspired this vegeterian stew/soup/main dish, but moreso by my love of lentils along with my desire to pump up an otherwise bland dish of pasta and spinach and a handful of very lonely sundrieds... You can add sausage, turkey, chicken grilled, or just admire its simplicity and satisfying nature on a cool rainy day... Total prep time 10 min, cooking time 30 minutes...

Ingredients

Serves: 10-12

16 ounces lentils (any colour)
10 ounces fresh spinach (or frozen - chopped)
1 pound pasta (pref shells)
1 handful sundried tomatoes
1 clove garlic (unpeeled)
1 teaspoon olive oil
2 bay leaves
1 pinch of salt
1 pinch of pepper
pesto (to taste)
1 pinch of red pepper flakes
parmigiano reggiano cheese (to taste)

Method

Lentil and Spinach 'Stoup' With Pasta and Pesto is a community recipe submitted by ChrisHammer1971 and has not been tested by Nigella.com so we are not able to answer questions regarding this recipe.

Open 1 lb bag of lentils - sort/inspect them to be sure there are no rocks! No need to rinse, though...

In a large 10 qt pot, heat 8 cups of water, add the garlic unpeeled but broken into cloves...as the water boils, the skins pop off...

Add the 2 bay leaves...chop the sun dried tomatoes and add them to hot water until softened...using a slotted spoon, remove tomatoes, garlic and bay leaves...

With water still boiling, add lentils and stir once gently...lower gas to simmer...make sure that you have a lid, cook lentils over low heat for 10 minutes...

While you wait, remove skins from garlic cloves, chop and pop back in the water... Add pasta to water, simmer 10 minutes more...when pasta is al dente, add spinach to pasta/lentil mix, and cook a final 5 minutes...

Shut gas off, remove pot from heat, and season with:Tablespoon of Basil pesto (or to taste), Kosher Salt, Cracked Black Pepper, Red Pepper flakes and a tablespoon of EVOO Serve tableside with grated Parmigiano-Reggiano... Mangia!