After making a sufficient mess in the kitchen this weekend, some lovely gals came over for Sunday dinner. I love playing hostess, and am super lucky to have friends who act as my cooking guinea pigs! The menu was a little bit haphazard, but the outcome was a warm, hearty and healthy meal with good friends, which is the most important part!

This red lentil soup is very simple to prepare, but with a drizzle of the spiced oil on top and garnished with a sprig of coriander, it will look like you slaved over the stove.

The easy-to-follow recipe for the red-lentil soup is from Gourmet Magazine: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Red-Lentil-Soup-with-Spiced-Oil-11495.  I wouldn’t skip out on the spiced oil since it’s a snap to make and adds a nice kick to the soup. It would fit well in any kind of Indian-inspired menu; the soup is slightly reminiscent of dahl and is really tasty over rice or grains.
My friend Priya brought over some delicious savory scones, so we nibbled on those with our soup.