Daughter-in-Law Soup

¾ cup red lentils, rinsed (do not substitute green lentils)

1 small to medium onion, chopped

1 medium tomato, grated

3 cups stock

2 tbs bulgur wheat (fine or instant) (can be omitted, reduce stock)

2 tbs Turkish or Arab red pepper paste

4 tbs butter or 1 tbs butter and 3 tbs pure olive oil

Mint, 2 tsp dried or 2 tbs chopped fresh

1 tsp paprika or Aleppo pepper

salt to taste

4qt or larger pot, with lid

Heat the butter/oil in the pan. Fry the onion until translucent, then add the paste and grated tomato and saute for 3 minutes or until boiling. Add the lentils, bulgur and stock. Bring to boil, cover and simmer over low heat for about ½ hour, or until the soup is creamy and the lentils are soft. Add hot water and adjust salt if it's too thick. Add mint and pepper, simmer for 5 minutes more, then let cool enough to serve.

Makes 6 cups, enough for a first course for 4-6 people or a main course for 2-3. Keeps and freezes reasonably well.

For an even faster version which is almost as good, forget about frying the onions and just simmer everything together.

Optionally, add parsley and/or chopped blanched greens (e.g. spinach, mustard) with the lentils. If using greens, add a little lemon juice at the same time as the mint.

Notes: To grate a tomato, cut it in half and grate the cut side into a bowl on the large holes of a box grater, discarding the skin. Aleppo pepper is a medium-hot dried pepper common to Turkish recipes. The best substitute is paprika (esp. smoked paprika) spiked with cayenne, red pepper flakes or dried chipotle. Turkish/Arab red pepper paste is somewhat smoky and spicy; if unavailable, use Italian red pepper paste or tomato paste combined with 1 tsp smoked paprika.