One-Pot (really!) Sausage Lentil Soup

Ciao tutti!

Here is a delicious and souper :) easy Sausage Lentil Soup recipe. Last year a lady in my Bible study brough it for dinner and it was a hit. I am pretty sure it's gluten free too - Julie you'd have to let me know on that one! :) I love it because it literally takes one pot to make this soup. Tonight I made it in about an hour and 20 minutes. 20 minutes to brown sausage & chop veggies and then 1 hour to let it all simmer together into yummy goodness! Great recipe for a momma with young and busy kiddos. Oh, and did I mention the kiddos eat this!?!? :)

Sausage Lentil Soup

1/2 lb. Italian Sausage (tonight I used Trader Joe's "Hoefbrau Brats" - you can use any sweet italian sausage though)
1 onion chopped
2 bell peppers chopped
2 carrots chopped
3 garlic clove pressed
1 bay leaf
1 qt. chicken broth
16 oz. can diced tomatoes (undrained)
1 cup water
3/4 dry lentils

Directions:
1. Take sausage out of casings and brown sausage, add veggies and saute for a few minutes.
- If you MUST drain the fat off of the browned sausage you can do so, however, I've found that if I buy a lean sausage there is no need to do so.

2. Add rest of ingredients. Cover and simmer for 1 hour.
3. Serve with dijon mustard (sounds funny but the soup isn't quite as tasty without a little dollop of dijon mustard stirred into each individual bowl!)