Italian Lentil Stew

There's nothing like a thick, rich, stew like soup to satisfy even the biggest appetites. And did you know that our Western states grow lentils so we can have lots of thick, rich goodness for all of our popular Italian-style dishes?!

Serves: 4

Cooking Time: 25 min

Ingredients

• 1 cup lentils, rinsed
• 4 cups beef broth
• 1 bay leaf
• 8 ounces bulk Italian sausage
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 (14-1/2 ounce) can Italian-style stewed tomatoes

Instructions

1. In a medium-sized saucepan, combine lentils, beef broth, and bay leaf. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer, covered, until lentils are just tender, about 20 to 25 minutes.
    
2. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, cook sausage over medium-high heat until browned, stirring to break up into small pieces. Add onion and garlic and cook until just tender, about 5 minutes.
    
3. Stir in lentil mixture and stewed tomatoes. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and simmer 10 to 15 minutes.
    
4. Remove bay leaf before serving.
   
    

Notes

If you use Italian link sausage, squeeze the sausage out of the casing so it can be broken up into small pieces as it browns.