Ezogelin soup

Ezogelin Soup!
I eat this soup at least once a weak. It's a typical soup you can get at any restaurant in Turkey. Over the weekend I took a Turkish cooking lesson. It was a perfect occasion that brought together food lovers from different circles. We learned how to make Ezogelin soup (a traditional lentil soup with pepper paste and dried mint), Yaprak Sarma (rolled grape vines), Imam Bayildi (a famous egg plant dish with looooots of onions), Mucver (zucchini fritters), and last but not least walnut stuffed figs cooked in light clove infused syrup.

Here is the recipe for the soup:

6 cups red lentils, washed but NOT soaked!
1 cup coarse bulgur
1 tbsp butter
1 tsp vegetable oil
1 tbsp tomato paste
1 tbsp red pepper paste
1 tbsp dried mint-- fresh mint will not work!
1 tbsp red pepper flakes
5 cups of chicken stock
4 cups water
1 tsp flour

Simmer the lentils for 15-20 minutes in about 4 cups of water, until they disintegrate and turn into mush. Set aside. Don't worry if they start drying. In a large boiling pot, melt the butter together with the oil (the oil will prevent the butter from burning). Add the flour to the melted butter to prepare a light roux. Mix in the mint, the tomato and pepper pastes, and the red pepper flakes. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Add in the chicken stock and the lentils, bring to boil, and mix in the bulgur. Simmer for 10 more minutes and serve with fresh lemon wedges.

If you are in the US, you can buy most of the Turkish ingredients for very reasonable prices online at Tulumba.