LENTIL SOUP WITH SPICY ITALIAN SAUSAGE

Justin thinks this may be the best soup I have ever made!

2 TB olive oil
1 lb. Italian sausage, cut into ½ inch cubes (I used 2 links hot and 2 links mild.)
1 lg. onion, chopped (about 3 c.)
2 – 3 lg. carrots, peeled, chopped (about 1-3/4 c.)
2 lg. parsnips, peeled, chopped (about 1-3/4 c.) *
2 lg. celery stalks, chopped about 1 c.
2-1/2 t. dried Italian seasoning blend
1 lb. brown lentils (about 2-1/3 c.)
3 qts. Chicken broth **
5 oz. pkg. baby spinach leaves
Black pepper

Cut links of sausage in half lengthwise and then in ½” slices. Heat oil in lg. pot on medium-high heat Add sausage and cook until browned, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer sausage to bowl. You may need to add a little more olive oil to pan at this point. Add onion, carrots, parsnips, celery, and Italian seasoning blend to drippings in pot; cook until onion is translucent and vegetables begin to soften, stirring often, 7-8 minutes. Add lentils; stir to coat. Add broth. Bring to boil; reduce heat to medium and simmer until lentils are tender, stirring occasionally and adding more broth by ¼ cupfuls if soup is too thick, 20 min.

Add sausage to soup and simmer until vegetables are tender and flavors blend; 10-12 min. Season to taste with black pepper. Stir in spinach. Cook until spinach is wilted, about 3 min. Serve with cornbread or hot rolls.

*If your store doesn’t have parsnips, use a couple of potatoes, peeled and cut in ½” cubes.

**The recipe calls for low-salt chicken broth and then says to season to taste with salt and pepper. I used regular chicken broth and did not add any salt. We thought the seasonings were perfect.