This recipe requires eight spinach leaves but only a few stalks. Use the remaining stalks for the salad recipe on page 89.

Serves: 4-6
Cooking time: 1 hour

1½cups brown or green lentils, prepared and washed (see page 16)
7 cups water
2 cloves garlic crushed with 1½ teaspoons salt
¾ cup onions, chopped
½ cup olive oil
8 spinach leaves plus a few stalks, chopped finely
½ cup lemon juice
1 teaspoon corn flour / cornstarch (optional)
1 stalk of celery, chopped finely

Place the lentils in a saucepan with 7 cups of water and bring to the boil. Cover and simmer until tender.

Brown the onions in oil. Add the chopped spinach and the garlic crushed with salt, and mix well. Sauté slowly until the spinach becomes soft.

Bring the lentils back to the boil and add the celery and the sautéed mixture. Turn the heat to low and simmer slowly for 5 minutes.

For a thin soup, mix in the lemon juice and adjust salt to taste. For a thicker soup, mix the corn flour / cornstarch with the lemon juice before adding it to the cooked soup, and then allow soup to simmer for a few minutes longer.