Thank Goodness for Leftovers Soup

This week, I visited my local butcher who had some fabulous looking pork ribs for sale.  The woman helping me advised 3 pork ribs for a "very hungry man".  I guess I didn't trust her so I bought 7 pork ribs for the four of us because it's so hard to tell how large they are in the case.  It turns out that one pork rib would have sufficed per person, but that also meant I had leftovers!  I used the three extra cooked pork ribs to put together this quick soup.  I'm sending this over to Deb at Kahakai Kitchen for her weekly Souper Sunday round-up!

Joie's Thank Goodness for Leftovers Soup or (Red Lentil, Spinach and Pork Rib Soup) by Joie de vivre

Ingredients:

1/4 c. olive oil

1 large onion, chopped

5 small carrots, peeled and chopped

5 cloves garlic, minced

2 1/2 quarts of chicken or beef broth (I used a combination because that's what I had!)

2 c. red lentils

3 leftover country style pork ribs (or any kind of meat), chopped into bite sized pieces

10 oz. spinach leaves

salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1.  Heat a large soup pot over medium high heat.

2.  Add the olive oil.  Saute the onions and the carrots in the olive oil for about 5 minutes, until the onion starts to brown.

3.  Add the minced garlic and saute for 30 seconds until fragrant.

4.  Add the chicken or beef broth and bring to a boil.

5.  Stir in the red lentils, lower the heat to create a gentle simmer, partially cover the soup pot and cook until the lentils are soft, about 25 minutes.

6.  Stir in the cooked meat and cook for 5 minutes.

7.  Stir in the spinach and cook until wilted, another 5-10 minutes.

8.  Adjust the seasonings and serve!