Garden Orzo Soup

Total Time: 1 hr 10 mins Preparation Time: 20 mins Cook Time: 50 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 8
• 2 teaspoons margarine
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 -2 garlic clove, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup dried lentils
• 1 cup water
• 3 (429 ml) cans low sodium chicken broth (i make my own broth and use about a litre and a half)
• 2 large carrots, peeled and thinly sliced
• 2 medium red potatoes, cubed (i leave skins on for extra nutrition)
• 1/2 teaspoon dried marjoram
• 1/2 teaspoon dried tarragon
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1 cup frozen peas (you can use canned if you want but that will increase the sodium content)
• 1/2 cup uncooked orzo pasta (can substitute with small pasta of any shape)
• 1 (14 1/2 ounce) can diced tomatoes with juice (i use the low sodium of course!)

Recipe

• 1 in a large pot, melt margarine, add onion and garlic. cook over medium heat until onion is softened.
• 2 add all remaining ingredients except peas, orzo and tomatoes. cook over high heat until it reaches a full boil (6-8 minutes).
• 3 reduce heat and simmer, covered until lentils and potatoes are tender (10 minutes).
• 4 add peas, orzo and tomatoes. increase heat back to high. bring to a full boil (8-10 minutes).
• 5 reduce heat again to low, and let simmer until orzo is tender (10-12 minutes).
• 6 *when cooking lentils, do not add acidic ingredients like tomatoes until they are of desired texture. the acid in the tomatoes prevents them from getting softened.