March is here, which means the sun starts showing itself a little more. But it’s still kind of cold out there, isn’t it?

I like even the thought of spring coming, but March is still that in-between season when it’s beautiful but cold. Which means that it’s not time for fresh salads and grilled foods quite yet. And it’s a shame, I completely agree with you!

What’s a girl to do, then? Soup, of course!

Yes, I know, I’m obsessed with soup. But what is great with this one is that you can have it all year round. Moreover, there is only one direction to follow! (this is hands down the easiest recipe I’ve written up so far)

My Mama has been making this soup for as long as I can remember. Growing up, it was a Wednesday lunch staple, along with split pea soup… and just any legume soup you can think of, although none had as much success as lentil soup. See, Wednesday was Greek school day so I think Mama made a point of serving us Greek food for lunch.

To this day, I’ll still have lentil soup over anything else in the house! Especially if I get my olives with it!

Serves 3-4

• 250g / 8.8 oz. / ½ cup lentils
• 1L / 4 cups water (750ml / 3½ cups if you’re using a pressure cooker)
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, finely chopped
• 1 tomato, grated (or 2 tbsp canned chopped tomatoes)
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1½ tbsp vinegar (or more, to taste)
• Salt & pepper
• 1 bay leaf

Optional: sort your lentils to make sure there aren’t any small stones left. Rinse the lentils and let them soak for a couple of hours in lukewarm water before cooking.

Put all the ingredients together in a saucepan and cook for 45mn to 1 hour over medium heat, until the lentils are cooked.

If you use a pressure cooker, the soup will be ready in 20 minutes.

I serve mine with a handful of plum black olives, such as Volos.

Enjoy!