Comfort Soup Vegetarian Chickpea Food

COMFORT SOUP (CHICKPEA AND BACON)

Steps:

• Saute onion, garlic and bacon together until the onion is soft and translucent. Don't be tempted to drain the bacon fat (I use a rather lean bacon, anyway, and there's not that much fat - if you have tons of it, then remove some). Add the chickpeas, carrots, tomato paste, bay leaf and 1 1/2 quarts water. Season to taste. Bring to a simmer and cook, covered for 1/2 an hour. Add the pearl barley and simmer for another 40-60 minutes, or until the chickpeas and barley are cooked through and the soup is quite thick (if the soup is too thick, thin with a little hot water until you achieve the consistency you desire).
• This was a really satisfying meal with a tossed green salad and garlic bread.

CHICKPEA SOUP

Steps:

• In a large saucepan, heat the oil over low heat. Add the garlic and fry until golden, 1 minute. Add pepper flakes, parsley, chickpeas, salt, pepper to taste and 6 cups of water. Increase heat to medium-high and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to medium, cover, and simmer 20 minutes. Remove half the chickpeas and mash. Return the mashed chickpeas to the saucepan and continue to simmer for 10 minutes. Taste and add more salt and pepper if necessary. Drizzle with olive oil and serve with bread.

CHICKPEA NOODLE SOUP

Steps:

• Set a medium soup pot over medium-low heat. Add olive oil. When hot, add the onion, carrots, and celery. Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened - about 8 minutes.
• Add the garlic, thyme, turmeric, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, for one more minute.
• Add the broth and chickpeas. Stir. Increase heat to high and bring to a boil. Add egg noodles or other pasta. Stir and reduce heat to low for a simmer. Cook until pasta is al dente - my bag of egg noodles calls for 10 minutes, but your pasta may take a different amount of time, so check your pasta package.
• When pasta is cooked, remove from heat. Stir in parsley and lemon juice if using. Taste and add additional salt and pepper if desired. Serve.

VEGAN CHICKPEA NOODLE SOUP

Steps:

• Warm olive oil in large, heavy pot over medium-high heat. Add carrots, celery, and onion and cook, stirring only occasionally, until lightly browned in spots and starting to get tender, about 10 minutes. Stir in garlic and cook 1 minute more.
• Add broth, herbes de Provence, bay leaves, and black pepper to the pot with the vegetables and bring to a boil. Simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes.
• While broth simmers, bring a pot of well-salted water to a boil and cook noodles until tender but still firm to the bite, about 7 minutes or according to package directions. Drain and toss noodles with a small amount of oil to prevent sticking.
• Remove soup from heat and stir in chickpeas, parsley, and lemon juice. Ladle soup into bowls, adding noodles to each bowl right before serving.