I’m not yet in the habit of eating raw tomatoes, except if one finds it’s way onto my hamburger. Generally, if I’m going to eat tomatoes, cooked is the way to go. Better yet, is roasting them….it’s kinda my new fave. And roasting tomatoes is rather easy. While this recipe uses roasted cherry tomatoes, you can roast any kind of tomato (though if it’s a regular size tomato, just chop it in half or quarters & lay in pan skin side down). Here’s how you do it:
Turn up the heat in your oven (somewhere around 400F is good). Put the tomatoes on a baking sheet, in a single layer. Pour a glug of olive oil over top, along with some fresh or dried oregano & basil & thyme, a few good grinds of pepper and a sprinkle of kosher salt. Zap in the oven for about 25 minutes to 40 minutes depending on the size of the tomatoes. When they are wrinkled and a bit charred, they are ready.
Roasted tomatoes are great in pasta salads, or as a rustic spaghetti sauce and they are perfect in this lentil soup. Using black beluga lentils not only gives this soup a dramatic colour, but the lentils are nice and firm (similar to lentils du puy) when cooked so they don’t fall apart or get soggy.
black beluga lentil soup with roasted cherry tomatoes
1 c black lentils, rinsed & picked over
1 small onion, diced
1 celery stalk, diced
1 large carrot, diced
1 large potato, diced
vegetable stock
1 bay leaf
1/2 t red chili flakes
1 t marjoram
salt + pepper
1 c roasted cherry tomatoesPut the first five ingredients into a large soup pot. Cover with vegetable stock and bring to a boil. Add in bay leaf, chilis and marjoram, turning down the soup to a slow simmer. Cover. After 20 minutes, the lentils and the vegetable should be soft. Add in the roasted cherry tomatoes and taste. Adjust seasoning with salt & pepper.
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yum. you might laugh, but i made lentils for the first time last week. i’ve eaten them,b ut never cooked with them. i’ve clearly been missing out.
in other news, i love roasting tomatoes for salsa. adds a little ooomph.
I HATE raw tomatoes. I’d tear this soup up though!
wow, that soup looks so amazing! the colour just jumps right out at you! and i totally agree about roasting tomatoes — and any other vegetable as well! i’ve already tried your roasted tomato pasta salad and i can’t wait to try this recipe! i’ve never cooked black beluga lentils before and i can’t wait to try!
Roasting tomatoes can turn even the blandest of tomatoes into a whirl of intense flavor. I love this soup!
Lentils are so versatile and very pocket friendly and they taste so great!! Roasted tomatoes sound just divine as an addition to this lentil dish! I’m really surprised you’re not a fan of raw tomatoes because they can be sour and I know how much you enjoy sour foods. I can’t live without tomatoes. I eat them in salads every single day during the summer months. I don’t know what I would do if I ever developed an allergy to them…maybe I’d cry – LOL!
This soup looks great! Roasted tomatoes sound great, too!
I LOVE lentil soup. Isn’t your hubby not a soup lover? How could he not be with that gorgeousness?
YUM – that looks fabulous!!!
I’ve roasted tomatoes before but never cherry or grape tomatoes. Definitely need to try that. I love the look of this soup. I always eye the beluga lentils but never know quite what to do with them.
Heather, I’m shocked! Love the idea of roasting tomatoes for salsa…that’s something I’ve never done before.
Naomi, nice to see you are in the same camp with me! Pull up a chair 🙂
Thanks Karen, the soup looks great and the tomatoes help to make everything pop.
So true, Joanne.
Bijoux, I think it’s a childhood trauma kinda of thing 🙂 I’m also not a fan of the texture which is a bit too squishy for me.
Thanks Michelle!
I know, Dana, it’s the worst. He’ll eat my soups but he won’t smile as he’s eating.
Thanks Cookie Pie.
Ashley, I like roasting the smaller tomatoes better since it’s less messy in the end.