Lentil and Sausage Soup with Sweet Potatoes and Herbs

Ingredients

• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 tsp. + 2 tsp. olive oil
• 6 cups chicken stock
• 2 cups water, plus more water as needed to deglaze the pan or thin the soup after soup simmers
• 1 cup brown lentils
• 1 T finely chopped fresh sage
• 1 tsp. fresh thyme
• 5 links turkey Italian sausage
• 1 can petite diced tomatoes
• 1 or 2 large orange sweet potatoes, coarsely chopped
• Salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste

Directions

1. Warm the olive oil in your soup pot, then stir in the onion. Cook it over medium-high heat for about 5 minutes, until it has softened.
2. Add the sage and thyme, using frozen herbs if you like, and cook for a minute or two longer.
3. Pour in the chicken stock and water, then add the lentils. Set the pot over low heat to simmer while you brown the turkey Italian sausage and cut up the sweet potato.
4. In a frying pan large enough for the sausage, heat the other 2 tsp. olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the sausage and let the outside get nicely browned.
5. Set the sausage aside until it is cool enough to handle, then cut each link in half lengthwise and slice it into half-moon pieces. If you want a little extra browning, return the sliced pieces to the pan and brown the cut sides.
6. Pour about 1/2 cup of water into the sausage pan, scraping the bottom to loosen all the browned bits, then add that liquid to the soup pot.
7. Peel the sweet potatoes and cut them into medium-sized chunks.
8. Once the lentils have simmered for 30 minutes, stir in the browned sausage, the canned tomatoes with their juice, and the chopped sweet potatoes. Continue cooking at a very gentle simmer for about 60 minutes more, until the sweet potatoes are tender and beginning to melt into the soup.
9. Add salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste, then serve the soup hot.