RECIPE

SPINACH & LENTIL SOUP

By Christian Dischler

INGREDIENTS  3 tbsp olive oil  1 onion, diced  1 carrot, peeled and diced  1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced  4 garlic gloves, minced  1 tbsp tomato paste  1 1/2 tsp ground cumin  1 1/2 tsp ground coriander  1/4 tsp cayenne or red pepper flakes  1/2 tsp salt  1/2 tsp black pepper  1 bay leaf  1 quart vegetable stock  1 1/2 cups green or red lentils  2 cups water, as needed  2 cups fresh spinach  1/4 cup chopped cilantro  1 lemon or lime, juiced DIRECTIONS  In a large cast iron or ceramic pot, heat olive oil on medium high until shimmering. Add onion, pepper and carrots. Cook until onions begin to turn golden brown. Add garlic and cook for additional 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Add spices, tomato paste and flour. Cook until fragrant.  Add vegetable stock to mixture and continue stirring until liquid comes to a boil and paste is incorporated. Add lentils to liquid and cook on high heat for 5 minutes. Lower to simmer, place lid on and cook for 20 minutes, or until lentils are tender.  Add spinach, cilantro and citrus juice. Cook until spinach is tender. Add water to the soup as needed to reach desired consistency. Season to taste and enjoy.

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A New Slate

The start of a new year can be a blank slate for many things, including health.

Some of the most common New Year’s resolutions revolve around health — losing weight, eating healthier, etc.

These are all well and good, but remember that your goal doesn’t have to be lofty to achieve success.

For instance, if you’re not keen on working out and want to start being more active, ease in. Start with walking, a low-impact and stress-relieving activity. If you have a personal tracker, you can start by counting how many steps you normally take in a day. Then add 1,000 the next week and keep adding regularly until you reach 10,000 steps, or whatever your goal may be.

When it comes to dieting, start small. Replace an afternoon snack with fruit for a week. Then replace a side dish with healthy vegetables for another.

And finally, go easy on yourself. Mistakes and setbacks may happen, because we are, after all, human. But if at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.

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MA GAZINE

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