Philosophizing About Food With Francine: Beluga Lentil Soup

by Francine Black

Beluga Lentil Soup to usher in the New Year!

Throughout the nations of the world, New Year celebrations are accompanied by traditions and superstitions. 

In Mexico, lentils are a symbol of abundance and good fortune. Many folks will eat a cooked spoonful of these tiny coin shaped legumes on New Year’s Day, leave a bag of dried ones before their front doors, as well as handing out dry lentils to friends and guests to assure prosperity in the year to come. 

In Italy, eating lentils at New Year’s is a deeply rooted tradition that isn’t about superstition at all. Rather this tradition is a symbol of gratitude for abundance and starting the year well fed and filled with hope.

We’re familiar with various types of lentils: green, brown or yellow. By far my favorites are the tiny black ones grown here in the USA. They remain lustrous and whole throughout their cooking travail. Known as black or black beluga lentils (I suppose the “beluga” refers to their resemblance to the enormously pricey caviar.),  they are delicious and don’t have the tendency to break down and get mushy as their cousins do. 

These tiny nutritional powerhouses are packed with plant based protein, fiber, iron, folate and potassium. Their dark color is as a result of their antioxidant properties, much like dark berries. 

  Besides all that goodness, their nutlike flavor is delicious. I used them in a soup to warm us as this New Year’s Eve is really cold. They would however be lovely in a salad or veggie bowl, or mixed with wild rice and used to stuff a little Cornish hen. I hope you give them a try!

I wish you all a very Happy Hopeful New Year!  

[This is not Francine's recipe, but you can find a highly rated recipe for the soup here.]

High in the mountains above Bally, where the dense groves of treetops seem to touch the sky, is Francine Black, Boyertown’s own version of chef Julia Child. Her daily activities reflect the things she most values: family and friends, music, and lovingly prepared food.

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