Italian Lentil Soup (with parsnips and carrots...)

.
I found this soup at the great blog Anne's Food. I have to say I agree with Anne though, I'm not quite sure what makes it Italian... In fact I would like to go even further and say I don't think the Lentil part is a good name either. Sure there's lentils in it but they are no way the main feature or main flavour. If being in the soup is enough to give it the name it might as well be called parsnip soup or carrot soup or potato soup. I guess if I got to name it I would have rather named it Carrot parsnip lentil soup.

Any way. The name doesn't really matter does it. What matter is that this soup was delicious and filling. Yet another soup that has been a regular on our menu this winter.

Ingredients:
1 onion
1 garlic clove
2-3 carrots
2 parsnips
3 potatoes
½ cup (100 ml) red lentils
2.5 oz. (70 g) bacon (I doubled this, what can I say we like bacon...)
3.5 cups (800 ml) vegetable stock
3/4 cup (200 ml) milk
cup (100 ml) cream
1 tsp dried thyme
2 bay leaves
salt, pepper
butter

Chop onion and garlic. Peel the carrots, parsnips and potatoes, and cut into coins and dice, respectively. Cut the bacon into strips.

Fry the bacon in a dry frying pan until it's lightly browned. Add some butter and the onions, garlic, carrots and parsnips. Fry for five minutes, then add lentils and potatoes. Fry for a few more minutes, then add water, stock, thyme and bay leaves.

Cover and cook for about 20 minutes, until all the vegetables are soft. Add milk and cream, and season with salt and pepper.