Sour Soup

1/4 c Dried chick peas
1/4 c Cracked wheat
1 c Dried red lentils
4 c Boiling water
1 bn Swiss chard; or other greens such as dandelion or amaranth
1/2 c Fresh lemon juice
2 ts Salt
1/2 ts Near East or Aleppo pepper
1/2 ts Pureed garlic
3 tb Finely chopped fresh mint

Place chick peas in a bowl, cover with water by at least 2 inches, and soak overnight.

Drain the chick peas and place in a large saucepan. Rinse the cracked wheat under cold running water, and add to saucepan, along with 2 1/2 cups of cold water. Bring to a boil, then simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes.

Rinse the lentils under cold running water, and add to chick peas and cracked wheat. Pour in the 4 cups of boiling water, and simmer another 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, wash the chard, cut off the thick stems and finely chop them. Add chopped stems to saucepan and simmer for 5 minutes. Finely chop the leaves, add them to the saucepan, and simmer an additional 25 minutes. Add the lemon juice, salt, pepper, pureed garlic and mint, stir well and simmer 5 minutes. Remove soup from the heat, and adjust the seasonings. If soup is too thick, add more boiling water. Serve warm or cold.

Yield: 6 servings

Printer friendly version: Sour Soup

Click Back to return here.