Color is Delicious: Red Curry and Red Lentil Soup

I heard a story recently on NPR about how beans are the food of our era. It makes sense, doesn't it? They're cheap, easy to cook, environmentally friendly to grow and oh, so nutritious. And if you think they aren't delicious, you're downright crazy. Beans are one of nature's most versatile edibles. I'll be proving that to you in the coming weeks. Let's start with this fun fact: I just made the best brownies I've ever had with black beans.

So here's to eating more beans- my New Year's resolution, only four months late. You may begin with the fart jokes now.

Red Curry and Red Lentil Soup
-serves 6-10, depending on how hungry you are


1 1/2 cups red lentils
1 can light coconut milk
1 can full fat coconut milk
6 medium carrots, diced
3 ribs celery, diced
2 medium yellow onions, diced
2 oz red curry paste
1 cup water

kosher salt, olive oil
* spinach
* cashews
* lime

Toss onions, celery and carrots with oil and a pinch of salt and roast at 375 until cooked through and starting to caramelize, about 25 minutes. Place lentils, light coconut milk, curry paste and water in a large pot and cook according to these instructions. It is very important that you do NOT salt the lentils until they are nice and soft but not mushy, which should take about 30 minutes. Remove one cup of cooked lentils and blend them with the full fat coconut milk. Return the mixture to the pot and add vegetables.

* These things are optional. If you are going to use them, serve each bowl of soup over freshly wilted spinach. Adding it in while cooking will result in brown spinach. Use as many cashews as you like; I prefer raw, unsalted ones. Squeeze lime over the soup before serving if you're feeling fancy.