Green lentil soup

Ever since I received a dutch oven from the future in-laws for Christmas I have been all over soup.  My previous soup making endeavors took place in a HUGE pot that could prepare enough gruel for an army.  Anyway, I've  been hankering to make this particular recipe for a couple of months now.  I wanted to make it SOOOO bad that I went to THREE different grocery stores to look for french green lentils today.  This resulted in me becoming super cranky because Whole Foods is the only place that sold them, and they were ALL OUT.  Grr.  I figured regular old green lentils would do, and they did!  This soup is rich, earthy (in a good way), healthy, and easily modified.  Num.  Rating 9/10.

Recipe by Heidi Swanson

• 2 cups of green lentils (or french green lentils, or black beluga lentils) picked over and rinsed
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 large yellow onion- diced
• 1 cup of butternut squash (optional) cut into 1 inch cubes
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 28 oz diced fire roasted tomatoes (or regular diced tomatoes)
• 2 cups of water (if you don't like dense soup)
• 3 cups of deveined and chopped kale

Saffron yogurt

• 1 pinch of saffron
• 1 tbsp boiling water
• 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt

Boil six cups of water in a 4 qt or larger pot and add in lentils.  Cook until tender- about 20 minutes.
While the lentils are cooking prepare the saffron yogurt by combining the saffron and boiling water and then mix it into the Greek yogurt after a few minutes. 
Combine the olive oil, sea salt, butternut squash, and the onion in pan and fry until tender.
Pour the tomatoes into the pot containing the lentils and combine.  Add in the additional two cups of water if you like a less viscous soup.
Combine the squash/onion mixture into the lentils and mix. 
Add in the kale and simmer for a few more minutes before serving with a huge dollop of yogurt.