Happy February!
Whether your January has felt super long or too short, I welcome you to this new month and new year.
It has been really nice to take a month off from blogging to rest after the holidays and figure out more of what 2020 holds. And I have hope that it will be wonderful for all of us!
I also took January to reset on eating. I know, nothing new here after a great and filling holiday season.
Here’s how we’ve been trying to reset:
- Get off the dessert-every-night habit and return to dessert as a treat (it’s hard, but it’s coming!)
- Limit drinking during the week (another hard one, but we’re getting there)
- Make veggie-forward recipes and splurge a little on the weekend
- Cook from Healthyish’s 2020 Feel Good Food Plan
I’m a firm believer in balance, so we’ve been throwing some more veggies into the mix and cooking more at home, while still baking at home, too, so we can still have some treats.
Quick, healthy and comforting soup
This soup was probably our fave recipe in the Healthyish plan, and it uses chicken thighs, which we’ve recently re-discovered. I’m so glad I had a bag of red lentils and ground turmeric in the pantry for this one.
It makes a great broth, and you get to fry little crispy onions to put on top.
Oh and yogurt! Plain yogurt is key to making your cooking/eating better. We put that stuff on curries, soups, wraps and in dips. It’s an all-around great thing to have in your fridge.
I’m hoping that this Chicken Lentil Soup recipe can be my little February gift to you to help you fight the cold weather and the need for comfort food that doesn’t leave you feeling weighed down.
Here’s to February!
Chicken Lentil Soup
This Chicken Lentil soup is healthy and comforting and full of flavor.
Ingredients
- 4 chicken thighs, patted dry
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 onion, thinly sliced into half moons
- 6 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
- 1 cup red lentils, rinsed
- 1 tsp. ground turmeric
- salt and pepper
- 1/3 cup fresh parsley, chopped
- 2 tbs. fresh lemon juice
- plain yogurt
Instructions
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Lightly season chicken thighs all over with salt and set aside. Heat oil in a medium pot or Dutch oven over medium-high. Add onion, season with salt, and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, 12–15 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring often, until garlic is golden and onion is deep golden brown, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and transfer onion and garlic to a plate and set aside.
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Return pot to medium-high heat; pour in lentils and sprinkle turmeric over. Cook, stirring a few times, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add reserved chicken and 6 cups water, seasoning generously with salt and some pepper. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low, stirring occasionally, until chicken is cooked through and lentils are tender, 20–25 minutes.
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Using tongs, transfer chicken to a cutting board; let cool slightly. Shred meat with forks or your hands. Return shredded chicken meat to pot and add parsley. Remove from heat and stir in lemon juice.
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Ladle soup into bowls and drizzle with yogurt and top with reserved onion mixture.
