Absolutely Most-Basic Lentil Soup

This is my basic recipe for lentil soup. No photo because to be honest it's not particularly attractive, but it is soothing and filling. It's a scaled-down version of my basic chicken soup (which will indubitably appear here eventually), but relies on already-made chicken broth (your own or store-bought). It's good if you're feeling under the weather. Make sure you use red lentils, or the cooking time will be way off.

Most-Basic Lentil Soup

1 cup red lentils, rinsed and picked over
3 cups chicken broth
1/2 bay leaf
1/2 to 1 tsp allspice
small pinch cardamom
small pinch cumin

Put all ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer, covered, about 20 minutes, until lentils are tender and have begun to fall apart. Add salt if necessary (if using your own broth). Let cool a little, fish out the bay leaf, and serve!

Serves 2.

For a basic but not "most-basic" version, first saute some chopped onion in the bottom of the saucepan before adding the lentils and broth.