Bedouin-style spinach, lentil, and lemon soup

Some recipes come from the dessert, and this is one of them. The recipe is about a few ingredients and is cooked slowly to extract flavour and nourishment. Lentils form the core of this soup, slow-cooked until they retain a lovely bite, and spinach is added for colour and nourishment. The magic in the soup is the topping of coriander and garlic (taklia), which adds a pop and wonderful flavour. The soup is filling, and the slow cooking allows the community ot travellers to come together and bond or exchange news.

I loved the soup; it was perfect for this cold weather with a slice of buttered sourdough bread. This is a lovely winter dish, filling and nutritious, and one that keeps you warm.

Greg and Lucy Malouf have travelled extensively across the Middle East, publishing several specialised cookbooks along the way. This cookbook specialises in Syrian cuisine with a modern flair, a thick volume filled with amazing recipes like this one and photographs. I have cooked a few recipes from this book, but definitely not enough, and each is spectacular. I need to complete collecting their cookbooks; oh, I wish I had a larger cookbook budget. This book is for those who are looking for spectacular Syrian cuisine.

For more delicious recipes from this cookbook, click here.

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 onion, finely diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/1/4 cups brown lentils, rinsed and soaked in water overnight

5 cups water or vegetable stock

Salt, to taste

1 bunch spinach, stemmed and chopped

1/2 cup cilantro, washed and minced

Juice of 1-2 limes

For the taklia:

6 cloves of garlic

4 tablespoons olive oil

2 teaspoons ground coriander

Salt, to taste

Make the taklia by adding all the ingredients to a small mortar and pounding with a pestle until very smooth. Set aside until needed.

Heat the oil in a pot and add the onions and garlic. Sauté on low heat until the onions are very soft but have not taken on any colour.

Add the lentils and fry for 5 minutes, coating them with the oil. Add the water or stock and bring to a simmer. Cook on low heat for 25-30 minutes, until the lentils are cooked through but still retain a bite. You do not want the lentils to get mushy.

Add the spinach and cook for 3-4 minutes, until it's just cooked and bright green. Overcooking the spinach will make it a dull grey. Remove from the heat and add the lime juice. Taste for tartness and salt, and adjust as needed.

To serve, heat the soup until quite runny, then top with 1/2 teaspoon taklia. Serve immediately.