Ingredients
- 1 pound mild Italian ground sausage
- 2 cups green lentils, rinsed
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 3 stalks celery, sliced
- 3 carrots, peeled and sliced
- 1 small eggplant, diced
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon dried basil
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 1/2 tablespoon dried thyme
- 8 cups low sodium chicken broth
- 2 (15-ounce) cans diced tomatoes, do not drain
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- shredded Parmesan and/or fresh parsley
Instructions
- Brown the ground sausage in a large skillet over medium heat, until cooked through, breaking apart into small pieces as it cooks.
- Add cooked sausage, lentils, onion, celery, carrots, eggplant, pepper, basil, oregano, thyme, and chicken broth into large slow cooker.
- Cook on low for 8-10 hours or on high for 4-5 hours.
- Stir in the minced garlic one hour before soup is finished cooking.
- Garnish with shredded Parmesan and fresh parsley before serving, if desired.
PREPARING FOR THE FREEZER:
- Let soup cool. Portion cooked soup into resealable freezer bags (or individual containers), remove air, lay flat, and freeze.
PREPARE AFTER FREEZING:
- Thaw in the fridge for 24 hours. Reheat in large stock pot on medium-low heat, stirring occasionally.
Notes
If you want to speed up the process of cooling the soup, you can place the soup pot or container in a bath of ice water, stirring soup every few minutes.