WHAT I ATE TODAY + AMY CHAPLIN'S PUY LENTIL SOUP + FAVOURITE COOKBOOKS

Hi Guys,

As it’s quite late this Saturday evening here in Sweden as I’m writing this I’ll keep it brief. I hope that’s okay! You see, in two days I’ll be heading to Dubai for work and to visit Rob’s parents and I have an awful lot to do before we go, to make sure I have some exciting things to share with you whilst I’m away. One of those things I hope will be up before this month ends and it is a breakfast e-book I’ve been working on which will be free to those of you who’d like to sign up to my future subscription list, so keep your eyes peeled if you’d like some morning inspiration. But enough about that for now and let’s focus on the new What I Ate Today vlog that just went up on my youtube channel.

It’s full of good food and a whole lot of rain as Rob and I filmed it on a particularly stormy day with hail and all. I also share my five favourite cookbooks and make the recipe I share here today from Amy Chaplin’s fantastic book At Home in the Whole Food Kitchen. This book is truly my favourite of all cookbooks so far in my life and I’m excited to share a little glimpse into it here on the blog today with her yummy Puy Lentil Soup. Perfect food for a rainy day! Just to let you know before I go Amy also posts recipes for free on her website if you want to try some more before pulling the trigger on that marvelous book.

I wish you all a peaceful and joyful remainder of the weekend and I’ll see you next from sunny Dubai! If you want to follow along as I travel check out my instagram and I’ll try to update insta-stories too as much as possible. And maybe I’ll get the chance to film a vlog or two there as well, stay tuned and enjoy! x

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PUY LENTIL SOUP BY AMY CHAPLIN

YIELDS: 4-6 serrvings / TIME: 60-70 min

300 g (1 1/2 cups) puy lentils, sorted and soaked 12-24 hours in 960 ml (4 cups) filtered water

5 cm (2 in) piece kombu

6 bay leaves

1,7 litres (7 cups) filtered water

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 onion, diced

1 tsp salt, plus more to taste

6 garlic cloves

3 tbsp finely chopped rosemary

1/2 medium butternut squash, peeled, deseeded and cut into 1.8-cm (3/4-in) pieces (about 4 cups)

120 g (3 cups) sliced rainbow chard, plus more to garnish

2 teaspoons tamari

2 tsp balsamic vinegar

Freshly ground black pepper

Drain and rinse lentils; place in a large pan with kombu, bay leaves and water. Bring to the boil over high heat. Scoop off any foam that rises to the surface with a small sieve or slotted spoon. Cover pan, reduce heat to simmer for 20 minutes or until the lentils are cooked. Remove and compost kombu and bay leaves. Drain lentils and reserve cooking liquid – you should have about 1.1 litres (4 1/2 cups); if not add a little water.

Warm olive oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add onions and salt and saute until golden, about 5 minutes. Stir in garlic and rosemary and cook 2 minutes longer. Add squash and reserved cooking lentil liquid, raise heat and bring to a boil. Cover the pan, reduce heat to low and simmer for 6-8 minutes or until squash is tender. Stir in drained lentils and simmer covered for 10 minutes, remove the lid and simmer another 10 minutes or until soup has thickened and lentils are beginning to melt. Add chard and continue cooking for a few minutes longer until the leaves are wilted and tender. Stir in tamari and balsamic vinegar and season with salt and pepper to taste; remove from heat. Serve each bowl with a sprinkle of thinly sliced chard.

Note: Unlike red lentils, which are peeled, puy lentils need to be soaked to remove phytic acid. If you forget to soak them ahead of time, you can still make this soup, just increase the lentil cooking time to 30 minutes.