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1
wash and trim the onion, carrots and celery and dice them.
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2
put the onion, carrot, celery and olive oil in a larger, non-stick frying pan over medium-low heat.
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3
stir the vegetables every few minutes so they don't burn.
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4
once the vegetables have softened, after 7-10 minutes, add garlic, bay leaves, and chicken stock and turn the heat down to low so the pan is just simmering.
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5
check over the lentils carefully for rocks or other foreign matter--remove them.
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6
rinse and drain the lentils.
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7
add lentils to a stock pot or very large sauce pan with 6 cups of water.
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8
put lentils over high heat until they are come to a rolling boil.
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9
once the lentils boil, cover them with a lid and turn the heat down to medium or medium low (they should be gently boiling.
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10
).
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11
once lentils have boiled for 25 minutes, add the remaining 2 cups of water and boil for 10 more minutes.
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12
remove lentils from heat and take out 2 cups of lentils and place them in a separate bowl.
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13
add the vegetables and stock mixture to the lentil pan with the remaining lentils.
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14
remove bay leaves.
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15
use immersion blender to puree the soup.
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16
stir in the tomato paste and the 2 cups of reserved lentils into the pureed soup.
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17
heat the soup over low heat until it comes to a simmer.
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18
stir in the balsamic vinegar.
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19
add salt and pepper to taste.
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20
serve.
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21
note: this soup freezes well.
