A Soup of Lentils, Bacon, and Chard

Name: A Soup of Lentils, Bacon, and Chard
Yield: enough for 4
Ingredients: a large onion; olive oil; garlic – 3 or 4 cloves; unsmoked bacon or pancetta – a good handful, chopped; flat-leaf parsley – a small bunch; chard – a large bunch; Puy or Castelluccio lentils – 1 1/4 cups (250g); stock or, at a push, water – 4 cups (a liter); a bay leaf – optional; juice of a lemon; mint – a small bunch

December 14, 2011

On the right day, a deep bowl of lentil soup is all the food I need. The homey, almost spare quality satisfies me in a way fancier recipes cannot. The undertones of frugality, poverty even, are avoided by rich seasonings of unsmoked bacon, herbs, and good stock. The backbone of earthiness is given a fresh top note with mint and lemon juice. You can keep your beef Wellington.

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