Receta Recipe: Butternut Squash, Sausage and Lentil Soup

by Lauren DeSantis

There's something about the cold that make me crave soup.  I whipped out my cookbook with 300 Sensational Soups and flipped through the pages to find something yummy.  Recently, I've been trying to cook a little bit healthier at home so I was in-between the Beer and Cheese Soup, which sounded amazing, and the Lentil Soup with Roasted Vegetables and Sausage.  I opted for the healthy option with lentils.  Not only is this soup healthy, but it is delicious.  I changed the recipe a bit.  Here's my version below.     4 cups butternut squash, peeled and diced 1 red bell pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces 1 yellow onion, peeled and diced 1/2 red onion, peeled and diced 1 teaspoon ground cumin 1 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon pepper 1/2 teaspoon thyme 1 3/4 cups lentils 6 cups chicken stock (I used 6 cups of water with 4 tablespoons of Glory Foods chicken base.  It has this rich and smokey flavor that adds to the soup.) 12 ounces chicken sausage, cut into half-moons (I use the one with jalapenos.) Olive oil Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Toss butternut squash and peppers with some olive oil, salt and pepper.  Spread evenly on a baking sheet and roast for about 40 minutes.  Meanwhile, in a large pot, heat 1 tablespoon of oil over medium.  Add onions and saute until softened (about 12 minutes).  Add cumin, salt, thyme.  Add lentils and stock (or water and chicken base).  Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer until lentils are tender (about 45 minutes)  add sausage, squash and peppers.  Simmer until the sausage is heated through (about 5 minutes).  Season to taste.  Ladle into bowls and enjoy! Facebook Twitter Google+ Pinterest StumbleUpon LinkedIn