Budget Bytes' Chunky Lentil And Vegetable Soup - cooking recipe

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 medium onion, diced
1/2 cup leek, sliced (use the green bits if you want to make your leek go further)
3 -4 carrots, sliced
3 celery ribs, sliced
1 1/2 cups black beans, presoaked
1 cup brown lentils
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
fresh ground black pepper, to taste
1 (15 ounce) can diced tomatoes
4 cups vegetable broth
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 bunch kale, stems removed and sliced into strips

Preparation

Cook garlic, leek and onion in a large pot with olive oil over medium heat until tender. Add the celery and carrots to the pot and continue to saute for about 5 more minutes.
Drain the black beans and add them to the pot along with the dry lentils, cumin, oregano, smoked paprika, cayenne pepper, and some freshly cracked pepper (10-15 cranks of a pepper mill). Finally, add the diced tomatoes (with juices) and vegetable broth, and stir to combine.
Increase the heat to medium high and allow the pot to come up to a boil. Once it reaches a boil, turn the heat down to low, place a lid on top, and let it simmer for 30 minutes. After 25 minutes, test the lentils to make sure they are tender. If not, continue to simmer until they are tender. Add the Kale and stir through. Once lentils are tender proceed to step 4.
Taste the soup and add salt as needed (I added 1/2 tsp). Serve hot.