Easy & Healthy Red Lentil Baby Soup (2024)

Why we love this soup:

• Super easy

• Healthy, made with nutritious whole foods

• Simple vegetarian soup for baby

• Low sodium (can be made with or without stock)

• Can be served to 6 month old baby and older toddlers, kids and adults

• Freezable

• Red Lentils - we use red lentils for their sweet and nutty flavor

• Celery and Carrot - the basis of most great soups. Sautéing them with garlic and onion brings out the base flavor of the soup

• Vegetable stock - nutrition and ingredients will vary depending on which you buy. Look for one with minimal sugar, salt and preservatives. Avoid it completely if making for babies under 1, just use water instead and then season the adult portions with salt separately

• Spices and flavoring - using ground cumin and paprika to give a wonderful earthy flavor. Lemon juice and lemon zest are a must for that last zing

1. Sauté the veggies. Heat oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add onion, garlic, celery and carrots and sauté for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onions are soft and translucent (photo 1).

2. Bring to boil by adding vegetable broth (or water if making for babies), lentils, ground cumin, paprika, and black pepper (photo 2).

3. Simmer. Once brought to boil, lower heat, cover and simmer for about 30 minutes until the lentils are fully cooked (photo 3).

4. Season and blend. Add lemon zest and lemon juice, salt, and stir (don't add salt if making for babies under 1). Blend with an immersion blender or Vitamix to make the soup creamy and smooth (photo 4). Serve for yourself and for baby.

This soup pairs really well with the Easy Wholewheat No-Knead Bread.

Top Tips

• Create flavor by taking your time to sauté the onion, garlic, celery, and carrots to bring out the flavors before adding vegetable broth.
• Serve warm with freshly baked bread.

At what age can baby have lentil soup?

How do I store lentil soup for baby?

Store in the fridge in an airtight container for 3 days and in the freezer for up to 3 months. We use these cool pods to store soup in baby portions.

Can I just chuck all the ingredients together and cook?

You can, but the flavor may not be as nice. If you have time, it's best to sauté the onion, garlic, celery and carrot before adding vegetable broth to bring out the flavors.

Can I make unblended lentil soup?

Yes, but then it may not be suitable for very young babies until they can properly chew depending on the size of the vegetables.

Possible Recipe Variations

• Make it spicier by adding chili flakes or cayenne pepper to the mix (for adults).
• Add cheese on top. Feta cheese would work great crumbled on top for the adults (although it has too much sodium for babies).
• Serve the soup chunky. If you don't have a blender or prefer chunky soups this one can easily be served chunky depending on how able your baby is to chew chunkier vegetables.

• ▢ 1 onion
• ▢ 4 garlic cloves
• ▢ 2 carrots
• ▢ 2 celery stalks
• ▢ 1½ cup lentils
• ▢ 6 cups vegetable broth (or water) omit for babies

Spices

• ▢ 2 teaspoon ground paprika
• ▢ 2 teaspoon ground cumin
• ▢ ½ teaspoon salt omit for babies
• ▢ ½ teaspoon black pepper
• ▢ 1 large lemon - juice and zest

• Sauté the veggies. Heat oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add onion, garlic, celery and carrots and sauté for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onions are soft and translucent.

• Bring to boil by adding vegetable broth (or water if making for babies), lentils, ground cumin and paprika and black pepper. Once brought to boil, lower heat, cover and simmer for about 30 minutes.

• Season. Add lemon zest and lemon juice, salt and stir (don't add salt if making for babies under 1).

• Blend with an immersion blender or Vitamix to make the soup creamy and smooth.

1. Note on blenders: Always follow the instructions for the particular blender when blending. Immersion blender will be easier to use and requires less washing up. If using a Vitamix or any other blender be aware that hot liquids expand when blending so you may want to blend in two goes.

2. When cooking for babies replace vegetable broth with water and omit salt in recipe.

3. Storage instructions: Refrigerate for 3 days of freeze up to 3 months.