My friend, Rita, shared this recipe with me—a delicious combination of beans, lentils, orzo, vegetables and spices that make for an exotic-tasting soup. We’ve tried this recipe a couple different ways, and Gary, whose taste buds lean toward the not-so-exotic, really liked this soup minus the spices and cilantro.

I’m posting it in its original form (from the Feb 2007 issue of the McDougall newsletter), but you can certainly experiment with the spices and come up with a version that will please your family's taste buds.   

1. In a large soup pot, combine:

½ cup water

1 white or yellow onion, chopped

4 stalks celery, chopped 

2. Bring to a boil and simmer until vegetables have softened slightly (approximately 5 minutes), stirring occasionally.

3.  Stir in:

6 cups vegetable broth

1½ cups chopped tomatoes

1 cup red lentils

1 (15-oz) can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed

1 bay leaf

½ tsp ground cinnamon

½ tsp ground ginger

½ tsp ground turmeric

¼ tsp ground coriander

¼ tsp black pepper 

4. Bring to a boil; reduce heat, cover and simmer until lentils are tender, about 45 minutes. 

5. Add to soup pot:

½ cup orzo (rice-shaped pasta)

½ cup chopped cilantro*

2 Tbsp lemon juice 

6. Continue to simmer for about 10 more minutes. Discard bay leaf and serve hot with your favorite type of whole grain bread. Serves 10-12. 

*The cilantro adds a really good flavor to this soup, so if your family's taste buds tend toward the not-so-exotic (as my husband’s do), I would recommend toning down the spices, but sneaking in at least half the cilantro. Shhh … don’t tell.