Instapot Lentil Soup with Sausage, Spinach and Garlic

Let me just say yum! I love lentil 

Ingredients:

1/2 cup olive oil, divided

3 large links (about 8 ounces) of spicy Italian sausage *recipe called for 2 sweet

1 medium onion, diced

2 celery stalks, sliced or diced

2 medium carrots, peeled and sliced into half-moons or diced

4 cloves garlic, sliced (reserve half for later in recipe)

Kosher salt

A pinch of crushed red pepper flakes (optional) *didn't use these

1 cup brown lentils, sorted and rinsed

2 bay leaves

1 28-ounce can diced tomatoes

6 cups water

Freshly ground black pepper

Good bunch of spinach **recipe called for 3 to 4 cups shredded or thinly ribboned Swiss chard leaves or kale

Grated Pecorino Romano cheese to finish

Directions: 
Using the sauté function on high - heat 1/4 cup olive oil (enough to generously coat bottom of pot) in the Instapot. 

When hot, add the sausage, breaking it up with a wooden spoon until it starts to brown, about five minutes.

While the pot it heating / the sausage is cooking chop the other vegetables. 

Add the onion, celery, carrots, first two garlic cloves, a pinch of salt, and if you like your soup spicy, a pinch of red pepper flakes. Cook with the sausage until the vegetables soften a bit, another 5 minutes. 

Add the lentils, bay leaves, tomatoes, water (6 cups is, conveniently, a little less than 2 empty 28-ounce cans, so you can get any tomato pulp you missed), more salt and black pepper to taste.

Once you’ve added the remaining ingredients, including dried lentils, lock the lid and set to high pressure for 15 minutes. Let it naturally release for at least 10 minutes (or longer, if you have time), to help keep the vegetables intact. You can manually release the rest. 

Use the sauté function on high again to bring it back to a simmer (this should be take no time at all) and add the greens; cook until wilted.

To finish, divide soup among bowls, then add the remaining 1/4 cup olive oil and 2 garlic cloves to a small skillet (on the stove) and heat over medium until the garlic softens and hisses. Drizzle this over soup bowls, and top with fresh Romano, passing more at the table. Leftovers will keep for several days in the fridge. *I skipped this last part

Recipe taken from: https://smittenkitchen.com/2013/01/lentil-soup-with-sausage-chard-and-garlic/