Go Back
–+ servings
Curried Lentil Soup and Pita

Curried Lentil Soup with Pita

Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 2 hours 50 minutes
Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Servings

8 Servings

Ingredients

  • 3 cups whole wheat bread flour
  • 1½ teaspoons salt
  • 1 tablespoon sugar or honey
  • 2 teaspoons active dry yeast
  • 1¼ - 1½ cups room temperature water
  • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 3 - 4 tablespoons of coconut oil
  • 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
  • 1 onion finely chopped
  • ¼- inch piece of fresh ginger minced
  • 4 garlic cloves thinly sliced
  • 5 stalks celery finely chopped
  • ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
  • Pinch of crushed red pepper or 1 fresh jalapeño, chopped
  • 1 carrot finely chopped
  • 1¼ cups dried French or green lentils picked through and rinsed well
  • 1 tablespoon curry powder 2 teaspoons freshly grated turmeric, or 1 teaspoon dried turmeric and 3 curry leaves
  • 3 cups winter squash peeled and chopped
  • 3 or 4 quarts water or vegetable broth
  • 3 tablespoons fresh cilantro roughly chopped

Instructions

  • Pita Bread:
  • Combine flour, salt, yeast, sugar or honey, water and evoo in a large bowl. Knead dough by hand for 5 to 10 minutes. Roll dough into a smooth ball.
  • Smear evoo into a large bowl, place the dough in the bowl, smearing a little evoo on the top. Cover dough with a damp cloth and rest for 90 minutes.
  • Punch it down and knead for 5 minutes.
  • Section dough into 8 even pieces (3 ounces each). Roll each piece into a ball, cover, and let it rest on a lightly floured surface for 20 minutes more.
  • Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 500°F.
  • Roll each ball out with a rolling pin to a ¼-inch thick. Flour both sides to prevent the dough from sticking. Bake 2 to 4 balls of dough at 500°F for 3 to 5 minutes. When you see the pita begin to blow up and then brown slightly, it's done! Remove from the oven using a spatula. Take care when removing from the oven, pita are very steamy inside.
  • Keep cooked pita covered with a slightly damp cloth or even place inside a paper bag to keep them supple so they don’t dry out. If you want to make crispy pita chips, just bake the pita longer, about 8 minutes and let them cool on a rack.
  • Curried Lentil Soup:
  • Warm coconut oil in a large pot.
  • Add cumin seeds and toast until fragrant. Then add onion, ginger, garlic, celery, salt, and crushed red pepper; cook for 5 minutes.
  • Add carrots, lentils, curry powder or turmeric, squash and water; cover with water and simmer until the lentils are just soft, about 15 minutes.
  • Add cilantro at the end. Ladle into bowls and serve with warm pita bread..
  • Recipe published in JOY of KOSHER with Jamie Geller magazine Winter 2013. Subscribe Now. 
  • Chanukah 2013 Magazine