Mexican Lentil Soup with Roasted Garlic and Chilies

Mexican Lentil Soup with Roasted Garlic and Chilies
From "Fields of Greens: New Vegetarian Recipes from the Celebrated Greens Restaurant" by Annie Somerville

1 cup lentils, about 6 ounces
6 cups cold water
1 bay leaf
2 fresh sage leaves
1 fresh oregano or marjoram sprig
1 head of garlic
2 tablespoons light olive oil
1 pound fresh tomatoes, peeled and seeded, about 1-1/2 cups, or 12 ounces canned tomatoes with juice
1 red onion, diced, about 2 cups
Salt
1 teaspoon cumin seed, toasted and ground
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano, toasted
1 small carrot, diced, about 1/2 cup
1 small red or yellow pepper, diced, about 1/2 cup
2 tablespoons ancho chili purée
1/2 teaspoon chipotle purée
1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano

Sort and rinse the lenitls and place them in a soup pot with the water, bay leaf, sage, and oregano sprig.
Bring the water to a boil, reduce the heat, and cook, uncovered, at a gentle boil for 15 or 20 minutes, until the lentils are tender.
Remove the herbs.
While the lentils are cooking, preheat the oven to 350F.
Rub the head of garlic with a little oil, place it on a baking sheet, and roast for about 30 minutes, until soft. When the garlic has cooled, slice off the top of the head and squeeze the garlic out of its skin.
Puree with the tomatoes in a blender or food processor and set aside.Heat the remaining oil in a large saucepan. Add the onion, 1/2 teaspoon salt, the cumin, and the dried oregano; sauté over medium heat until the onion is soft, about 7-8 minutes. Add the carrot and peppers and sauté until tender, about 5 minutes. Add the chili purées, the puréed tomatoes, and 1 teaspoon salt; simmer for 10 minutes.
Combine the lentils and their broth with the vegetables, cover, and cook over low heat for 30 minutes. Add salt to taste. For more spice, add ancho or chipotle purée to taste. Sprinkle in the fresh cilantro and oregano before serving.

For ancho purée: Stem and seed one ancho chili (dried poblano) and cover with boiling water for 15-20 minutes. Put in blender with a bit of the water and blend to purée.For chipotle purée: Recipe says to purée one can of chipotles in adobo and use that; I just chop part of a chipotle and put in a little adobo – to taste.