Fifth Day: Syrian-style Lentil and Chard Soup

September 8, 2012

What can you say about Syria?

Syria is the blue country south of Turkey.

Syria is millions of years old. It is home to Antioch, the third largest city in the world in the second and third centuries, and the country harbors a magnitude of early religious history, including the Apostle Paul's conversion on the road to Damascus. It also inspired this next recipe.

To preface, I wanted to make spinach soup with the broth I had saved from cooking two gallons of chick peas on Sunday. I ended up forgetting about the spinach because I was searching for a recipe with nutritional yeast. This soup caught my eye because I love lentils and chard.

Recipe #5: Syrian-Style Lentil and Chard Soup~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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Rating: Meh. It has a lot of potential but it's not a winner.
Comments: The ingredients were not listed in the order you're supposed to add them, and the directions didn't mention this until the last step when it says, "Finish with lemon/lime juice to taste. Do not add the juice until the lentils are completely cooked." By the time I read that I had already added all the lemon juice. It turned out a bit sour. Overall, it was not worth it for the amount of clean up afterwards: I had used a knife and cutting board, the small handheld quick-chopper, two pans, a large pot, and two blenders because one was not effective. Plus we (Jeff and I) spilled some while transferring the hot soup to the blender and then also when we turned the blender on and it shot out the top. 

My Syrian soup.

I think I will try it again someday and follow the directions. After chilling overnight in the fridge it was quite appetizing. In this thicker consistency I think it would make a good chip dip.

Finally, Dad made this at GenTog today!