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More Winter Soups
Green Lentil & Vegetable Soup
Green lentil and vegetable soup is my go-to when I want something warm, filling, and nourishing. I simmer green lentils with a mix of carrots, celery, onion, and garlic in a well-seasoned broth until everything’s tender and flavourful. It’s simple, budget-friendly, and packed with fibre and goodness. Perfect for batch cooking or freezing, and especially lovely with a slice of crusty bread. This is one of those soups that feels like it’s doing you good from the inside out.
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 large onion, diced
- 1 large leek, sliced
- 1 turnip, diced
- 2 large potatoes, diced
- 2 large carrots, diced
- 1 cup green lentils
- 6 cups hot vegetable stock or broth
- 175ml dry white wine
- 1 cup hot water
- 1 bouquet garni
- Salt & pepper
Instructions
- In a large stockpot, heat the oil over medium heat and then cook down the onions and leeks for 5-10 minutes, or until soft.
- Stir through the wine, and simmer down for 2-3 minutes or until reduced by half.
- Add the remaining vegetables, stock or broth, hot water, bouquet garni, and season with salt and pepper.
- Increase heat and bring to the boil. Once boiling, cover and reduce heat to low. Simmer for 2 hours covered, or until the vegetables are all soft.
- Remove the bouquet garni, and using a stick or immersion blender, blitz the soup until smooth and creamy.
- Serve hot with a swirl of cream or a sprinkling of fresh thyme.
What I Cook With
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
8Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 166Total Fat: 2gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 1mgSodium: 602mgCarbohydrates: 27gFiber: 5gSugar: 4gProtein: 6g
Please note, this nutrition information is to be used as a guide only. Nutrition information isn’t always accurate.
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Green Lentil and Vegetable Soup
A Pantry Adventure
Green Lentil & Vegetable Soup came about, like most of my favourite meals, through a combination of habit and a dash of mild chaos. I make vegetable soup so often that I just assume I have everything I need – I rarely check. Sometimes that works out beautifully. Other times I find myself standing in the kitchen with an onion, half a turnip, and a basketful of hope. This was one of those times – I didn’t have all the ingredients for my usual soup but I did have green lentils, a bottle of dry white wine, and some rather sweet root vegetables begging to be used. That combination alone was enough to convince me this could be something special. And it was.
One of the best things about soup, especially this one, is that you don’t have to stress about uniform chopping or anything looking fancy. It’s all going to get blitzed into creamy goodness. Uneven bits, wonky chunks, the lot – it doesn’t matter. I threw in some carrots, a leek, and lentils, poured over the wine and stock, and let it do its thing. Covered and left to simmer gently for a good hour or two, the vegetables turned soft and the kitchen filled with the smell of earthy sweetness and gentle herbs. There’s something so deeply comforting about a pot bubbling away while you ignore everything else and hide under a blanket.
By the time I came back to it, the veg was soft and ready for the stick blender. I whizzed it into a rich, velvety soup, added a swirl of cream, and gave it a little taste. It was… delicious. Comforting, sweet, herbal, and just that bit sophisticated with the floral note of white wine sneaking through. It wasn’t the soup I set out to make, but it was absolutely one I’d make again. And now, it’s one I’m sharing with you.
No Bouquet Garni? No Problem
I love a good bouquet garni, but honestly, who keeps them on hand? Certainly not me. If you happen to have one hiding at the back of the spice drawer, amazing – throw it in and feel a bit proud of yourself. But if not, this soup is very forgiving. A good pinch of thyme, a bit of marjoram, and whatever aromatic herbs you have lying around will absolutely do the job. The whole point of this soup is that it embraces what’s already in your kitchen. You don’t need to go out and buy a special herb bundle. This is a soup for real life – for messy days and mismatched socks (I’m a Taurus, my socks are never mismatched!)
I’ve used dried herbs here more often than not. And sometimes I just chuck in a bit of everything that smells vaguely green and soothing. It always turns out. The combination of carrots and turnip is naturally sweet, and that sweetness balances so well against the earthy depth of the lentils and the wine’s slightly floral acidity. The herbs round it all off and make it feel more thought-through than it actually is.
And the best bit? It gets better with time. Like most good soups, a night in the fridge gives the flavours time to deepen and mingle and turn into something even richer. If you have leftovers, congratulations. You’re having an even better lunch tomorrow. Add a hunk of bread and that’s dinner sorted too.
Creamy Touches and Vegan Optional
Now, I’ll admit I like to finish this soup with a bit of cream – just a drizzle. It adds this silky finish that makes it feel a little more indulgent. But if you’re vegan or dairy-free, you can absolutely use coconut cream and it works a treat. I’ve done both and neither feels like a compromise – it just changes the character a little.
What I really love about this soup is how adaptable it is. I’ve made it with frozen spinach stirred through at the end. I’ve added a splash of lemon juice to brighten it. I’ve even added a handful of parmesan when no one was watching. You do you. This is a recipe that welcomes tinkering. It’s not precious. It doesn’t require perfection. Just a pot, some patience, and a vague idea of what you’re in the mood for.
So if you’ve got some lentils in the pantry, a few carrots or a rogue turnip knocking about, and half a bottle of dry white wine that you probably won’t drink, this is your sign. Make soup. Let it bubble away while you read, nap, or finally fold the laundry. Then pour it into a bowl, add your cream of choice, and enjoy something deeply comforting that didn’t require a special trip to the shops.
Ingredients Breakdown
Olive oil gets the base going and brings everything together with its subtle richness. Start with this and you’ll have a beautifully fragrant foundation for the rest of the soup. Onion and leek make up the flavour base – both aromatic and savoury, they gently cook down to create a sweet and mellow background note. They’re not here to steal the spotlight, just to set the stage.
Turnip, potatoes, and carrots are your root veg trio. Together, they offer sweetness, bulk, and earthy comfort. The carrots bring that bright natural sugariness, the turnip adds a gentle bite, and the potatoes give the soup its body and creaminess once blended. Green lentils are in the mix for protein and depth. They hold their shape while cooking but blend down into a smooth, lush texture that fills you up without feeling heavy.
Vegetable stock, white wine, and water are the liquid trio that coax out the flavours. The stock brings the savoury depth, the wine adds that lovely floral tang, and the water helps mellow it all out. A bouquet garni adds herby warmth while salt and pepper let you tweak the flavour just right. You can finish the soup with cream- any kind you like – for that final luxurious touch.
