| Serves | Prep Time | Cook Time |
| 4 | 15 mins | 8-12 passive hours |
So, here’s a little secret to boost just about any soup (or even stew) you make—add some salad dressing. Yes, really. The acidity from the vinegar has a magical way of pulling all the flavors together, and perking them up. A tablespoon or two makes almost any soup superb, especially hearty fall and winter ones like this Slow Cooker Lentil Soup. Enjoy!
| ½ cup | French lentils, picked over for any pebbles or debris | |||
| 3-4 cups | Vegetable broth | |||
| 2 | Carrots, peeled & diced | |||
| 2 | Celery ribs, diced | |||
| 1 | Small onion, diced | |||
| To taste | Sea salt | |||
| (Optional) | Extra virgin oil, to finish | |||
| Bread for serving, if you like | ||||
| 2 Tbsp |
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Add all of the ingredients to a slow cooker. Be generous when seasoning with the salt, especially if using store bought vegetable broth, which tends to be very under-seasoned—anywhere from 1 to 2 teaspoons should be good. Give everything a good stir.
Set the slow cooker to LOW, and cook for 8 to 12 hours, stirring occasionally if you’re home (but it’s okay to be on its own, too). The soup is ready to eat after 8 hours, but those extra 4 hours of simmering add a real depth of flavor (and means it’ll be ready just in time for dinner if you pop the ingredients in the slow cooker at 7:00am).
When ready to serve, stir in the Red Wine Vinaigrette. Ladle the soup into deep bowls. Swirl a bit of olive oil over the soup, if you like, and enjoy!