Things are pretty busy over here. Work is the most full it has been all year, and I’m needing to manage my time really well to get everything done. My now-mobile baby girl is practically running these days, which means I am very aware of my 20-week pregnant self as I chase after her. On top of that, our recent visit from a garden consultant means that my husband and I are inspired to do about a billion things in our yard NOW. Like, cutting down a useless tree, tomorrow. We move fast.

When life gets full, it’s time to make a big pot of lentil soup. It just makes lunch easy. The recipe comes from 101 Cookbooks, one of my favorite cooking blogs out there. The recipe is incredibly simple and takes no time at all to put together. I, of course, had to pack in some vegetables into the soup. Oftentimes it’s kale (lately from our garden!), this time it was chard from the market.

I love to eat it for lunch with a fried egg or two on top and a side of wheat bread drizzled with honey. Especially with the cold weather we’ve been having, it’s perfect.

Red Lentil Soup, adapted from 101 Cookbooks

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 cloves garlic, minced
5-6 cups water or stock (or a combo of both)
1 1/3 cups red lentils, rinsed
1/2 cup barley, rinsed
1 bunch kale, chard, or spinach, chopped

In a large soup pot, heat the olive oil and saute the onion with the red pepper flakes over medium heat for about 6-7 minutes. When the onions start to get nice and brown, add the garlic and cook for another minute.

Pour in the water or stock and bring to a boil. I start with about 5 cups of liquid and increase depending on what consistency I want. Stir in the lentils and barley. Simmer for 30 minutes. During the last 5 minutes, add the leafy greens. You’ll want to increase the heat a little to make sure the soup stays at a simmer.

At the very end, add a generous amount of salt to taste.