Welcome to week 6 of the 2026 Cooking Up Kindness Project. Check out my introduction to Cooking Up Kindness to discover what this humanitarian project is about. This week’s meal is:
Vegan Lentil Soup with Chickpea Salad Sandwiches
This meal includes a hearty lentil soup that is both vegan and gluten free paired with tasty vegan chickpea salad sandwiches on sourdough bread. The lentil soup contains two types of lentils plus onions, garlic, greens, celery, tomatoes, jalapeño pepper, and several herbs and spices. The soup is warm, comforting, and filling with a great blend of flavors and is packed with protein, vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants, those free-radical fighting compounds that protect our cells from damage. Lentils are an excellent source of protein and fiber, plus they are loaded with vitamins, minerals, and polyphenols. Just ½ cup of cooked lentils has 12 grams of protein and when accompanied by a whole grain, it delivers all of the nine essential amino acids. Lentils are also rich in potassium, iron, folate (vitamin B9), and thiamine (vitamin B1) making them excellent for reducing blood pressure, preventing anemia, and protecting the heart. They also can help lower LDL cholesterol and improve gut health. In fact, eating lentils regularly is associated with reduced risks of obesity, heart disease, diabetes, and cancer. The onions and garlic in the soup are very healing foods abundant in quercetin and allicin, two powerful antioxidants that are antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, anti-allergy, and antifungal, and protect the heart and brain. The tomatoes and jalapeños provide the antioxidants lycopene, lutein, capsanthin, vitamin C, and zeaxanthin which benefit the immune system, eyes, skin, and heart. The greens, celery, and parsley supply even more antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals. The chickpea salad is also full of protein and fiber from the legumes as well as more vitamins and minerals including vitamins A, B9, C, and K and calcium, magnesium, and potassium. It also brings in more polyphenols from the onions, garlic, celery, lemon, and olive oil used in the salad. In addition, the herbs and spices in both the soup and sandwiches contain a bevy of health promoting phytonutrients.
In addition, sourdough bread is a fermented food and fermented foods feed your “good” gut microbes and help to decrease the number of pathogenic microbes or “bad bugs” in your gut. Purchase a loaf of fresh sourdough bread from one of the cottage bakers or small bakeries in your area if possible to ensure that it is truly made from sourdough starter and is a fermented food. The meal is vegetarian and non-celiac gluten sensitivity (NCGS) friendly if using the sourdough bread. Many people who have NCGS can eat real sourdough bread because the fermentation breaks down the gluten and eliminates the reaction. Use gluten free bread for the sandwiches if needed. This meal is both delicious and an excellent health-booster. It provides nearly 30 different plant foods in one meal! Eating 30 different plant foods each week has been shown to support a healthy gut microbiome which has positive impacts on overall health and reduces risks of developing chronic diseases.
Shopping List
The shopping list for this week’s meal can be found here.
How to make the meal
Start this meal by making the Vegan Lentil Soup and letting it simmer while you make the chickpea salad. Find the Vegan Lentil Soup recipe here. While the soup is simmering, make the Chickpea Salad. Find the Chickpea Salad recipe here. To use the salad for sandwiches, you will use the eight slices of sourdough bread or gluten free bread, lettuce or spinach, and sliced tomatoes if desired. If you have time, let the salad sit for 30 minutes before assembling the sandwiches. When ready, spread a thick layer of chickpea salad on four slices of bread. Top each with lettuce or spinach and a slice of tomato followed by another slice of bread and gently press down. Slice each sandwich in half if desired. If you use a gluten containing sourdough bread, be sure to state that the meal is not gluten free. Alternatively, use gluten free sandwich bread.
Assembling the meal to gift
Repurpose glass jars for the soup and pack the sandwiches in repurposed aluminum or plastic take away containers. You can also pack the sandwiches in compostable unbleached parchment paper sandwich bags or wrapped in unbleached parchment paper. Alternatively, you can pack the chickpea salad in a repurposed container or glass jar and provide sliced sourdough or gluten free bread in a separate bag and have the recipient assemble their own sandwiches. Put all of the meal components in a bag or box. Attach a note telling the recipient the meal contents and how to heat and serve it. My note will look something like this:
Vegan Lentil Soup and Chickpea Salad Sandwiches
This meal includes vegan lentil soup and chickpea salad sandwiches on sourdough bread. Warm the soup in a pot on the stove for about 10 minutes or until hot. Serve the sandwiches at room temperature. Enjoy!
Notes and suggestions:
- Avoid using bleached parchment paper. It may contain residuals from the bleaching process and PFAs, those man-made “forever chemicals” that contribute to a laundry list of health issues including cancer, liver disease, and hormone disruption.
- Use organic lentils and chickpeas and rinse thoroughly before using to reduce the phytates.
- Let the soup simmer and the chickpea salad to sit for 30 minutes or more if possible to allow the flavors to develop.
- Using organic vegetables is best to avoid GMOs and pesticides. Kale and other greens are on the EWG Dirty Dozen list.
- Purchase sourdough bread from a cottage baker or small bakery or make your own to ensure it is a fermented food.
- Again, do what you can. Just making the meal is a wonderful act of service for someone even if that someone is yourself.
Now for Gifting the meal:
When I am ready to post the meal, my message on Buy Nothing looks something like this accompanied by a photo of the meal:
Hey Buy Nothing Community, once again for Lent this year I would like to offer one healthy nutritious meal each week to someone who could use it. I was hoping you could help me find some hungry takers. If you or someone you know could use a meal, pm me. I would be happy to deliver it. I’ll try to have it made by the middle of each week.
This week I am offering Vegan Lentil Soup with Chickpea Salad Sandwiches. The lentil soup is warm and filling and the sandwiches are an excellent vegan alternative to chicken salad. This nutrient-packed meal is vegan and can be made gluten free upon request. It is made with all natural ingredients, most of which are organic. I do not have a strictly gluten free kitchen but I am really careful about cross contamination.
Feel free to use the photos from my recipe if needed.
Thank you for joining me in this endeavor to spread a little kindness in our world.
I hope you enjoy making and gifting this meal. Please share any positive feedback you get when you gift your meal. I would love to hear it! Also, reach out to me with any questions or comments.
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