Spinach and Lentil Soup

    On Friday, my team surprised me with a delicious lunch in honor of my birthday over, which happens to fall over our winter break.  Since I bring soup most days for lunch, they cooked up a batch of delicious spinach and lentil soup.  Tonight I had invited my sister over for dinner and by the time the afternoon rolled around, my entire family was invited for dinner along with Arnauld's brother.  I had been planning to make Lemon Ginger Chicken but I was worried we might need something more.  Also, Arnauld's brother is a vegetarian so I didn't want him to only be able to eat rice and broccoli.  So I searched the internet for a recipe that seemed like it might replicate the soup my team had made.  Here is what I came up with:

Spinach and Lentil Soup

Ingredients
2 tbsp olive oil
1 shallot
2 celery stalks
2 carrots
2 medium red potatoes
4 cups chicken broth
1 cup water
1 tsp salt
1/s tsp pepper
3/4 cups lentils
6 cups spinach

Method
1. Put lentils in a saucepan and add water.  The water should be 2 inches higher than the lentils.  Bring to a boil and reduce to simmer.  Cover and cook for about 20 minutes.
2. While the lentils are cooking, heat oil in a large saucepan.  Add shallots and celery.  Cook until they begin to get soft.  Add potatoes and carrots and cook for 10 minutes.  Stir often.
3. Add broth and 1 cup of water.  Bring to a boil and then reduce to simmer for 2o minutes.  Stir in spinach and add salt and pepper.
4. Use immersion blender to puree soup mixture.  Stir in lentils and return to low heat for about 5 minutes.

The Taste Test
     This soup came out really great.  It tasted very similar to the soup my friends at work made, however the texture was different.  Their soup had more texture, while mine was pretty smooth except for the lentils.  The potato in this soup made this a thicker soup, which I really liked.   It was also an exciting day because both my dad and Arnauld tried this soup.  Arnauld has never even tasted any of the soups I have made.  He is a meat guy.  He was pretty hungry tonight so he had a bowl and liked it.  Maybe this will open him up to some of my other creations in the future!

I also made "everything brownies,"  For this recipe I use a box of brownie mix and throw in whatever I can find in the cabinet.  For this batch I added sliced almonds, mini chocolate chips, and marshmallows.  Ace was a big fan.