Red Lentil Soup

• 1 cup red lentils
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 clove garlic
• 8 ounces whole onion or 7 ounces ready-cut chopped onion (1 2/3 cups)
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 4 ounces peeled carrots or 4 ounces ready-cut chopped carrots (1 1/3 cups)
• 2 ribs celery or 4 ounces ready-cut celery ( 3/4 cup)
• 1 tablespoon fresh rosemary or 1 teaspoon dried
• 1/4 teaspoon hot pepper flakes
• 1 cup no-salt-added canned chopped tomatoes
• 1 tablespoon distilled white vinegar
• 1 ounce Parmigiano Reggiano (about 6 tablespoons coarsely grated)
• 2 slices crusty Italian or French bread
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• Freshly ground pepper to taste

1. Combine lentils and bay leaf with 5 cups water, and bring to a boil, partly covered.
2. Cook lentils at a simmer until soft, 10 to 12 minutes; watch carefully so that they do not boil over.
3. With food processor running, put garlic through feed tube to mince.
4. Chop whole onion by pulsing in food processor.
5. In a nonstick skillet, heat oil until it is very hot.
6. Add onion and garlic, and reduce heat to medium-high.
7. Saute until onion begins to brown and soften.
8. Slice whole carrots in food processor; slice celery in food processor.
9. Add carrots and celery to onions, and continue cooking until vegetables begin to soften.
10. Add rosemary, hot pepper flakes, tomatoes and vinegar, and continue cooking at a simmer while you finish preparing the rest of the meal.
11. Grate cheese and sprinkle on bread slices.
12. Toast or broil in toaster oven until cheese melts.
13. When lentils are cooked, drain, reserving cooking liquid.
14. Discard bay leaf.
15. Puree half of the lentils in the food processor.
16. (You may need a little of the cooking liquid to puree.)
17. Add the pureed lentils and the whole lentils to the tomato mixture, along with enough of the cooking liquid to make a thick soup.
18. Heat through, and season with salt and pepper.
19. Serve soup with bread

red lentils, bay leaf, clove garlic, onion, olive oil, carrots, celery, fresh rosemary, hot pepper, nosalt, white vinegar, crusty italian, salt, freshly ground pepper

Taken from cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/4576 (may not work)