The first significant snow of the season has fallen upon New Jersey and if that isn't a call to make a hearty soup, I don't know what is. As a general rule, the Soup Lady tries to avoid restaurant soup. I know I'm not the only one who thinks that's how they get rid of yesterday's leftovers. The one soup in this category that cannot be resisted is Carrabba's Sausage and Lentil Soup.
The soup is spicy (another tip-off that the ingredients are not quite fresh) but in this case I chose to ignore that. It's not hard to reproduce at home - this is my stab at it. A small green salad, some nice bread and some fresh fruit at the end is all you need to make this a completely satisfying meal.
Sausage and Lentil Soup
1. In a large saucepan, heat one tablespoon of oil. Add one carrot - diced, two stalks of celery- diced, one large onion- chopped and two cloves of crushed garlic. Saute until tender.
2. Remove vegetables from the pan and and add one pound of hot Italian sausage, removed from the casing, to the pan. Brown the drain off fat.
3. In a large stockpot, place eight cups of chicken broth, the sauteed vegetables and the sausage meat. Open two cans of whole tomatoes, break them up by squeezing them with your hands and add to the soup along with the juice. Add two cups of dried lentils which have been washed according to package directions.
4. Season with one teaspoon of salt, 3/4 teaspoon of black pepper, 1/2 teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes, 1/2 teaspoon oregano, 1/2 teaspoon thyme, 1/2 teaspoon of fennel seeds and one bay leaf.
5. Simmer until the lentils are tender, 30-45 minutes. Remove 1/3 of the soup and puree it using an hand-held blender, then return it to the pot. Correct seasonings and remove bay leaf.
The Soup Lady likes it hot, so I added a bit more red pepper. Sometimes I like to add a 10 oz. package of frozen spinach to the pot, or to serve it with some red wine vinegar floating on top.
I would like the recipe or this soup served at carrabas
Posted by: Vincent Pera | March 07, 2008 at 10:05 AM
Wasn't feeling good today so I thought some lentil soup would be good. I made the recipe with a slight twist. I don't like celery so left that out, I put a handful of rice in the mix and used cayenne pepper instead of the pepper flakes. I like the hot cayenne. Terrific!!
Posted by: Claudia Brooks | March 09, 2008 at 06:15 PM
OMIGAWD!!! I have been cooking lentils for years. I went to Carrabba's for the first time a few weeks ago. I saw the soup on their menu. Expecting it not to be as good as mine ~ I ordered the "small". What a tease!!! It was better than my meal! Anyway, I came home, went straight to their website ~ saw that I would have to buy their cookbook! (so dissapointed) Imagine my shock to see that the soup has been "googled" & that there are others who enjoy it as much as I ~ & you have given a recipe!!! Bless You!!! I will make this first thing today!
Posted by: Greg | April 06, 2008 at 02:47 AM
My husband and I had this soup at Carrabba's last week for the first time, and we fell in love with it. When I came across this recipe, I had to try it. It was GREAT!! I did substitute the spicy sausage with spicy turkey sausage. My husband couldn't tell the difference. Thanks for the recipe.
Posted by: Monica | April 13, 2008 at 03:59 PM
I have been making Italian Sausage and Lentil soup for many years, I usually add a choice vinegar at the end, plus...a tablespoon or so of Dijon mustard stirred into soup at the finish is delightful!
Posted by: Dawn | May 23, 2008 at 06:06 PM
Frank/Ed: One 28 oz can of tomato's works great. This is a FABulous recipe!
Posted by: Meichelle | June 10, 2008 at 09:53 PM
Does this freeze well?
Posted by: Heather | October 22, 2008 at 04:10 PM
I too have come looking for this recipe after tasting Carrabbas Italian Lentil soup, and I have to say it's delicious!!! It wasnt until I read the "blend 1/3 of the soup and add it back" that I got the right consistency-- thaaaank you!!!!
Posted by: Stefanie | January 13, 2009 at 06:15 PM
I use 1/2 chicken stock and 1/2 beef stock. It gives it a heartier flavor. I brown the sausage pieces (without the casing) a little in the veggie pan before I add it to the pot. I gets better on day 2- if there's any left!
Posted by: Sandy | January 15, 2009 at 12:23 PM
Made this soup last week and I am off to buy the ingrediants again. The soup is delicious!
Posted by: Phyllis | January 25, 2009 at 10:33 AM
the soup at carrabbas is not leftovers. they follow very strict recipes to ensure consistency in all of the restaurants. if you live near a carrabbas, you should go and try it. everything is homeade and fresh..spoken from experience..
Posted by: sarah | February 08, 2009 at 06:35 PM
This soup is absolutely the best. I have made it once a week for the last three weeks. My husband asked what would be wrong if we had it for lunch and dinner forever. I have even had it for breakfast.
Great website.
Posted by: Wanja | March 16, 2009 at 09:48 PM
My husband and I absolutely loved this recipe! I found the recipe and shortly after we went to Carrabba's to sample the soup and see if there was anything else we should add when making your recipe; the only things we found different in the Carrabba's version were bits of red bell pepper (I added half to this recipe) and some bacon floating around in there (I added three raw slices of center cut bacon while the soup was simmering). We also used low-fat hot chicken sausage instead of regular pork sausage. The result-- if I had been blindfolded while eating the soup I made, I would have thought Johnny Carrabba snuck into my house and served his soup instead. Thank you for this recipe!!
Posted by: Crystal | July 10, 2009 at 12:45 PM
mmmmmmmmmm.....just cooking this and the aroma is amazing...not sure what size cans of tomato to use so i improvised, also added fresh baby spinach. the colours are great.
Posted by: neil willey | September 12, 2009 at 05:38 PM
Lentil soup (or rice n lentils!) is one of the fall & winter joys! This sounds good. As Claudia said, a handful of (brown) rice is a great addition - & rice cooks in ~ the same time as lentils.
Posted by: Dia | November 11, 2009 at 05:54 PM