Red Lentil and Swiss Chard Soup

Keep the cold at bay with this warm and comforting soup which is also happens to be incredibly healthy.

Serves 2

Ingredients
200 g red split lentils
1 vegetable stock cube
1 red onion
200 g swiss chard
1 teaspoon ground cumin, 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
2 garlic cloves
1 lemon
1 bag coriander
4 tablespoons olive oil
salt and freshly ground black pepper

 

Method
Finely chop the onion and garlic. Dissolve the stock cube in 1 litre hot water.

Heat a pot over medium heat with 2 tablespoons olive oil. Sweat the red onion for 2 minutes. Add the chopped garlic and fry for a further 1 minute.

Add the spices, lentils and stock to the pot. Bring to the boil and simmer for 10 – 15 minutes. If necessary, remove the froth with a soup ladle.

Slice the stalks away from the leaves of the swiss chard. Wash the chard and drain in a colander. Finely slice the leaves and slice the stalks on the diagonal into 1 cm pieces. Heat a frying pan with 2 tablespoons olive oil and fry the chard stalks for 4 minutes, add the leaves and cook for a further 2 minutes.

Blend the cooked lentils with a stick blender to a coarse soup. Season with salt and pepper.

Add the fried chard to the lentil soup and add lemon juice to taste. Pick the coriander leaves. Divide the soup between 2 bowls and garnish with the coriander.


Ice Tea

Quench your thirst on warm summer days with this easy and delicious ice tea recipe.

 

Ingredients
4 organic Rooibos tea bags
1,2 liters boiling water
about 3 Tbsp castor sugar
slices of lemon or orange, mint leaves and ice cubes, to serve

Also delicious mixed with a little mango, pineapple or orange juice.

Method
Allow the tea to infuse in the water for about 5-10 minutes. Remove the tea bags and stir in the sugar until dissolved. The amount of sugar you add is up to you. You can either add more or less or leave it out completely.

Allow the tea to cool and refrigerate until chilled.

To serve, fill long glasses with ice, lemon slices and mint leaves. Pour over the chilled tea and enjoy.