Lentil-Sausage Soup/

[AngelaM]

I love the Lentil and Sausage Soup at Carraba's Grille. It is thick and spicy and full of flavor. I have tried making lentil soup in the past and it was blah. Do you have a recipe similar to them? I imagine it uses Italian style sausage.

[Jessiek]

this is from one of the many Copycat recipe message boards....i've never tried or eaten the soup so I cant vouch for it, but maybe it will give you some ideas?

Carrabba's Italian Sausage and Lentil Soup

1 lb Italian sausage
1 large onion, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
2 large carrots, chopped
1 small zucchini, chopped
6 cups chicken broth
2 x 14½ oz cans diced tomatoes, undrained
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tspn salt
2 cups dry lentils, rinsed
black pepper, red pepper flakes, basil, oregano, parsley, thyme, to taste


Brown sausage; drain off fat.

In a large pot combine all ingredients; bring to a boil.

Reduce heat, cover.

Simmer for about 1 hour or until lentils are tender. Add water, if necessary, for desired consistency.

Sprinkle with parmesan cheese, serve.

[AngelaM]

this is from one of the many Copycat recipe message boards....i've never tried or eaten the soup so I cant vouch for it, but maybe it will give you some ideas?

Carrabba's Italian Sausage and Lentil Soup

1 lb Italian sausage
1 large onion, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
2 large carrots, chopped
1 small zucchini, chopped
6 cups chicken broth
2 x 14½ oz cans diced tomatoes, undrained
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tspn salt
2 cups dry lentils, rinsed
black pepper, red pepper flakes, basil, oregano, parsley, thyme, to taste


Brown sausage; drain off fat.

In a large pot combine all ingredients; bring to a boil.

Reduce heat, cover.

Simmer for about 1 hour or until lentils are tender. Add water, if necessary, for desired consistency.

Sprinkle with parmesan cheese, serve.

Thanks! Its worth a try. I've never worked with lentils...do they kind of burst and thicken like split peas? (And since I asked that, I would love split pea soup recipes...have never found one that I love).

I want to add that I am trying to do WW, so in all cases, the healthier, the better.

[Gilgamesh37]

I've never had the soup at Carrabba, but we love BC's lentil soup (which has some sausage in it), I know the recipe's been posted here before--I love to make a double batch and freeze in individual portions. (iand n my experience, no, lentils don't really break down and thicken up the way split peas do)

As for split pea, here's one I tinkered around with until I got it the way we like. If I have a ham bone in the freezer (and I often do) I throw that in too. Healthy, um, maybe not so much, but so good, especially on a cold, wet night, with fresh hot rolls to go with.....

GIL’S SPLIT PEA SOUP

2 cups green split peas
2 quarts water
1 bay leaf
10 peppercorns
2-3 carrots, diced
1 large or 2 medium onions, chopped
2-3 ribs celery, with leaves, chopped
1 lb smoked ham hocks
1-1 ½ lbs Cure 81 or other smoked ham (a piece roughly as big as your 2 fists together)
salt & pepper T
Tabasco or other hot sauce, to taste

Place split peas and water in a stockpot and let soak overnight. Using the same water in which they soaked, bring the peas to a boil, add the ham hocks, bay leaf and peppercorns (you may want to wrap those in cheesecloth) and simmer, covered, for one hour. Add the carrots, celery, and onions to the soup and simmer for another hour. Remove the ham hocks, chop off the meat and return it to the pot. Chop the Cure 81 ham into a medium-small dice and add it to the pot. Salt to taste (despite all the ham, it will take a bunch), pepper, and hot sauce to taste. Cook for another 10-15 minutes until the ham warms through. Freezes very well.

[Joanie B]

I've never been to Carrabas, but I love this recipe, it's been posted on the CLBB before and I've made it a lot. I use hot turkey sausage, French green lentils (they hold up a bit better than the brown ones, I think), and only part of 1 can of tomatoes (not my favorite part of the soup). After I brown the sausage, I take it out and toss in the veggies til they get some color for a bit for more flavor. It's not too thick and the lentils don't blow out (at least the French greens don't). Good and hearty. Just make sure you rinse those buggers in a fine mesh strainer and eyeball for little sticks/stones!

[srahndennis]

This is still on my to-try list.

Spicy Sausage, Lentil, and Tomato Soup
(Makes about 6-8 servings, recipe adapted from Sausage and Lentil Soup at The Joy of Soup.)

2 tsp. + 2 tsp. olive oil (or more, depending on your pan)
1 onion, chopped small
1 cup finely diced celery
1 T minced garlic (or less, but I like a lot of garlic in this)
1/2 tsp. hot red pepper flakes (more or less to taste)
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
1 tsp. dried Greek or Turkish oregano (or regular oregano will work, but don't use Mexican oregano)
1 tsp. ground fennel seed (optional, but this really adds to the flavor)
5 links (19.5 oz.) hot turkey Italian Sausage (check the label to find turkey Italian sausage with less than 10% fat for South Beach Diet)
8 cups chicken stock (or use 5 cans chicken broth; 14.5 oz. can, and freeze the extra 8 oz.)
3 cans petite dice tomatoes with juice (14.5 oz. can)
1 1/2 cups dried brown lentils
2 dried bay leaves
salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
chopped fresh parsley for garnish (optional)

Heat 2 tsp. olive oil, add chopped onion and celery and saute until it's just starting to brown, about 5 minutes. Add minced garlic and saute 1 minute more, then add red pepper flakes, dried thyme, dried oregano, and ground fennel seed and saute 1 minute more. Put onion mixture into large soup pot.

Add 2 tsp. more olive oil, squeeze turkey sausage out of casings and saute until the sausage is nicely browned, breaking it apart with a metal turner as it cooks. (You may need a bit more olive oil if you don't use a non-stick pan.) Add browned sausage to soup pot, then deglaze the pan with 2 cups of the chicken stock, scraping the browned sausage bits off the bottom of the pan, and add that to soup pot.

Add the rest of the chicken stock, diced tomatoes and juice, dried lentils, and bay leaves to the soup pot. Heat soup until it's barely boiling, then reduce heat and simmer on low for about 1 hour or until lentils are soft when you bite into one.

When lentils are soft, remove about 1/3 of soup mixture and use an immersion blender, food processor, or blender to puree the mixture until it's very smooth, about 2 minutes. (Be very careful with the hot soup if you use a food processor or blender.)

Add pureed mixture back into the soup left in the pot, stir to combine, and simmer on low for 30-45 minutes more, until soup is as thick as you'd like it. (The longer you cook it the thicker it will get.) Taste soup, season to taste with salt and fresh ground black pepper, and serve hot, garnished with chopped parsley if desired.

This soup freezes well, so you might want to make a double batch and freeze some for lunches to take to work.


This printable recipe from KalynsKitchen.com.