Just because lately I’ve been very much into high protein food, I thought I may share my recipe of Tuscany chickpeas soup with you. A simple dish, very filling and full of flavors. A dish that might seem appropriate for the warm weather but that I enjoy all year around.

If you surf the internet you’d find tons of different version of Tuscany chickpeas soups. With or without tomatoes sauce, with or without certain herbs, with or without garlic, with or without pork ribs, spicy or not.

The truth is that chick peas soup is a frugal food that has been prepared in so many ways it’s hard to define “the original”. My absolute favorite version of chickpea soup is the one I am writing about today, which has a “secret ingredients”. We could call it a “Silvia’s touch”. I found out there is a specific herb that combines perfectly with chickpeas: oregano!

So let’s get through the recipe and see if you will love it as much as I do!

INGREDIENTS

1 bag (500 gr. or 17.6 oz.) dried chickpeas soaked in water overnight

1 diced celery stalk

1 carrot peel and diced

½ diced white onion

1 diced leek

4 tbs. olive oil

1 rosemary spring

2 dried whole bay leaves

Vegetable stock 2 lt.

3 tbs. dried oregano

OPTIONAL: 60 gr. tomatoes sauce

OPTIONAL: chili infused olive oil

DIRECTIONS

After you left your chickpeas hydrating for at least 12 hours, start preparing the base for the soup. Warm up the vegetable stock.

In a large saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat, add the carrots, celery, onion and leek and sauté’ for about 8 minutes. If needed, to avoid the vegetables to burn, add a few tbs. vegetable stock.

Dry the check peas in a colander and add to the sauteed vegetables. Let simmer for few minutes. Add the rosemary and bay leaves’ tied together with cooking twine (it will be easier removing them later), and cover it with the vegetable stock. In case you may like, add the tomatoes sauce (I skipped this step, because I prefer the soup “white”).

Let the chickpeas soup rich the boil, then lower the heat and let the soup simmer for about 2 hours ½.  Get rid off the  rosemary and laurel, adjust with salt and pepper.

Serve with a side of baked bread and – if liked – a drizzle of spicy olive oil.

LEARNT IT, MADE IT, LOVED IT!

TIPS:

• Chickpeas are super healthy: they are rich source of vitamins, minerals, and fiber, they may offer a variety of health benefits, such as aiding weight management, improving digestion, and reducing your risk of disease. Go ahead to learn more benefits of chickpeas here
• This soup is very filling and absolutely delicious. When the soup is ready, I personally like to take out a few tbs of whole chick peas, blend the soup to make it smooth and creamy, and serve it with a few whole chickpeas on top. It will taste, but also look, fantastic! And kids would be much more interested in trying it 🙂
• In Tuscany they offer many variations of this soup: spicy or plain, white or with tomatoes sauce, with or without garlic, with pork ribs … I guess it depends on personal taste. So don’t worry but opt for the version that suits you the most
• I know I always arrive late, but anyway this soup would be perfect to be added to my list of “food to observe lent in a relaxed way”
• My deepest apologies for not publishing the recipes with the pictures step by step! I was so caught up in cooking that I totally forgot to take the pictures! I’ll do my best and update the recipe next time I’ll prepare this soup
• With the quantities listed you’ll get quite a large amount of soup! Don’t worry, you can freeze the leftover or store it in a sealed container in the refrigerator for 2/3 days

I truly hope you enjoyed this recipe… high protein food – different from meat – are very important for our body and health, so knowing the right recipes it’s a great way to take care of ourselves!

Thank you always for your support!

Silvia

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