Walls of Hope Soup

Ingredients

• 300 g dried black lentils
• 2 onions
• 2 cloves garlic
• 2 carrots
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• 1.5 l vegetable stock
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• 4 eggs
• 4 slices sturdy bread (e.g., Turkish or sourdough)
• 4 tbsp olive oil
• 1 lemon
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Fresh parsley (for garnish)

Method

1. Rinse the lentils and drain.
2. Finely chop the onions and garlic. Peel and dice the carrots.
3. Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a large pot. Sauté onion, garlic, and carrot for 5 minutes.
4. Add tomato paste, cumin, paprika, and coriander. Cook for 2 more minutes.
5. Add lentils and stock. Bring to a boil and simmer for 30 minutes until lentils are tender.
6. Meanwhile, hard-boil the eggs for 8 minutes. Cool, peel, and halve.
7. Cut the bread into cubes. Fry in 2 tbsp olive oil until crisp.
8. Roughly puree the soup with a stick blender. Season with salt, pepper, and lemon juice.
9. Pour the soup into bowls. Arrange halved eggs and bread cubes upright along the rim to form a city wall.
10. Garnish with fresh parsley.

Serving notes

• Serve with extra lemon wedges for a fresh touch.
• Place bowls on the table so everyone can take from the 'wall'.
• For extra festivity: sprinkle pomegranate seeds over the wall.