I will confess — I’ve been exploring pinterest for promoting photos of how to use hemp seed ingredients in recipes and stumbled upon this soup. There are many versions of it, but I’m going to give credit to Bri from Evergreen Kitchen, who is a nutritionist here in the Pacific Northwest and has some fantastic healthy recipes on her website with great photos and simple techniques that make you smile and not stress. I’m going to adapt her falafel with hemp hearts next! Anyhow, her soup looked so damn good, I had to try it. And that is pinterest for Ya! This is our photo by the way, NOT pinterest’s – I had to re-create it my own way.
I am a huge fan of roasted vegetables whenever possible, and this soup is all that. Roasting brings out a deep, meatier flavor (sorry, vegans, it just does), with natural caramelization (those carrots!) that cooking on the stove just doesn’t reach. On my second cooking of this soup, I basically dumped veggies from the fridge on the roasting pan (red pepper, sweet potato, and broccoli) since my eyes are always bigger than my stomach at the farmer’s market… gets me every time.
I adjusted the spices a bit to appeal to my spicier tastes, adding more garlic, red pepper flakes and black pepper. I added my own flair and drizzled an extra boost of immune-supporting hemp seed oil and hemp hearts to give it next level supersoup status. This soup has more nutrients and anti-oxidants than a supplement-boosted green protein smoothie, and in my opinion, tastes way better and sits way better in the belly. Make it now!
Here goes:
INGREDIENTS:
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1 yellow onion, chopped
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2 carrots, chopped
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2 celery stalks, chopped
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1” section of ginger, skin on
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1 tablespoon neutral oil (e.g. grapeseed, sunflowerseed oil, avocado oil)
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3/4 teaspoon salt + 1/8 teaspoon black pepper, divided use
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1 can pumpkin puree (13.5 oz / 400 ml can)
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1 cup red lentils, uncooked & well rinsed
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3 large cloves garlic, minced
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3 cups vegetable stock (plus extra to thin, if desired)
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1 1/2 teaspoon curry powder
- large pinch of red pepper flakes
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3/4 teaspoon cumin
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1 can full-fat coconut milk (13.5 oz / 400 ml can)
- 1 teaspoon of Queen of Hearts Hemp Hearts (per bowl)
- 1 tablespoon of Queen of Hearts Cold-Pressed Hemp Seed Oil (per bowl)
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Additional garnish: Salt & pepper (to taste), Fresh herbs (green onion, cilantro), Toasted pepitas, Yogurt (of choice), Spices (red pepper flakes, paprika)
DIRECTIONS
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Preheat oven to 450°F. On a large non-stick baking sheet, add yellow onion, carrots, and ginger. Drizzle oil on top, and toss to coat vegetables evenly. Sprinkle on 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon black pepper. Bake in oven for 20 minutes, until the edges are beginning to brown. Then, use a spatula to push roasted vegetables over to one side of the pan. Empty the can of pumpkin puree and spread it out over half the baking sheet. Put back in the oven for an extra 10 minutes, until the edges of the puree begin to brown. Remove from oven.
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Meanwhile, add red lentils, garlic, vegetable stock, curry powder, red pepper flakes and cumin to a saucepan. Cover with a lid, bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Remove from heat after 15-20 minutes, or when the red lentils are soft and fully cooked. Stir in 1/2 teaspoon of salt and coconut milk. Set aside to cool slightly.
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Scrape the roasted vegetables and pumpkin puree off the baking sheet and into a blender. Add the lentils and coconut mixture to the blender. Blend until smooth and creamy. Thin with extra vegetable stock if desired. Serve hot, and top with garnishes of choice (toasted pumpkin seeds, hemp hearts, yogurt, cilantro, a dash of paprika) and drizzle with a swirl of hemp seed oil.
Here’s where to get that hemp seed oil and hemp hearts.
Here’s the inspiration behind my soup. But I did not put leaves in my soup! 😀
Our photos (except for the leaves shot) are by our friend and local photographer, Silvia Flores.