Name: Lemony Chickpea Soup
Prep time: 14 min
Cook time: 33 min
Total time: 48 min
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients: 2 tbsp olive oil; 1 medium yellow onion (small dice); 1 medium carrot (small dice); 1 stick celery (small dice); null null sea salt (to taste); null null ground black pepper (to taste); 3 cloves garlic (minced); 0.5 tsp ground chillies or chili flakes (or to taste); 1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves (minced); 1 tsp lemon zest; 3 medium new potatoes (cut into 0.75 inch cubes (about 3 cups diced potato)); 1.5 cups cooked chickpeas (drained and rinsed if using canned); 4 cups vegetable stock; 4 cups baby spinach (not packed); 1 tsp lemon juice (plus extra (see note))

Instructions

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1

Heat a large, heavy bottomed pot over medium heat. Once the pot is hot, add the olive oil (2 tbsp) and swirl it around. Add the yellow onion (1 medium) to the pot. Sauté and stir them occasionally until very soft and totally translucent, about 6-7 minutes. If they are beginning to brown, lower the heat.
2

Add the carrot (1 medium) and celery (1 stick) to the pot. Sauté with the onions, stirring occasionally, until celery is slightly softened around the edges, about 5 minutes. Season the vegetables with [sea salt] and [ground black pepper].
3

Add the garlic (3 cloves), ground chillies or chili flakes (0.5 tsp), fresh thyme leaves (1 tbsp), and lemon zest (1 tsp) to the pot and stir. Sauté until the garlic and lemon is super fragrant, about 1 minute.
4

Add the new potatoes (3 medium) and cooked chickpeas (1.5 cups) to the pot and season again with [sea salt] and [ground black pepper]. Give everything a stir. Then add the vegetable stock (4 cups) to the pot. Give the soup another stir and place the lid on top.
5

Bring the soup to a boil and then lower the heat to a simmer. Set the lid askew on top of the pot so that some steam can escape. Keep simmering until the potatoes are very tender, about 15 minutes.
6

Carefully ladle half of the soup into the pitcher of an upright, vented blender. Blend this mixture on high until completely smooth. Pour the pureed portion of the soup back into the pot and stir. Add the baby spinach (4 cups) to the pot and stir again. Once the spinach is wilted, add the lemon juice (1 tsp) and stir once more. Check the soup for seasoning and adjust if necessary (more lemon, salt, pepper, chili etc!).
7

Serve the soup hot with drizzles of [olive oil] and extra [ground black pepper] on top.