Lentil And Kumquat Soup

• 3/4 cup (4 oz.) chopped pancetta or bacon
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 3/4 cup diced carrots
• 3/4 cup diced celery
• 1 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme leaves
• 1 1/2 cups French green*, black beluga, or regular lentils, sorted from debris and rinsed
• About 6 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
• 3/4 teaspoon pepper
• 8 ounces kumquats (about 24)
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
• 9 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley, divided

1. Saute pancetta in oil in a medium pot over medium-high heat until browned, 4 to 5 minutes. Discard all but 2 tbsp. fat. Add onion, carrots, celery, and thyme; cook, stirring often, until vegetables start to brown, 8 to 10 minutes.
2. Add lentils, 6 cups broth, and the pepper to pot. Cover and bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer until lentils are almost tender, 25 to 30 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, quarter kumquats and seed**. Finely chop 3/4 cup. Thinly slice remaining kumquats crosswise.
4. Stir sliced kumquats into soup and add 1/4 tsp. salt. Simmer until lentils are tender, about 5 more minutes. Stir in 3 tbsp. parsley and a little more broth if you like.
5. In a small bowl, combine chopped kumquats and remaining 6 tbsp. parsley and 1/4 tsp. salt; spoon onto bowls of soup.
6. *French green lentils (also called Du Puy lentils) and black beluga lentils hold their shape after cooking. Find them at well-stocked grocery stores and purcellmountainfarms.com.
7. **To seed kumquats, quarter the fruit lengthwise; then remove seeds with a knife tip.

bacon, olive oil, onion, carrots, celery, thyme, french green, chicken broth, pepper, kumquats, kosher salt, flatleaf parsley

Taken from www.myrecipes.com/recipe/lentil-kumquat-soup (may not work)