I. Love. Chickpeas. In case you didn’t know, chickpeas are one of my all-time favourite ingredients! You can use them for almost any recipe – hummus, curries, dahls, roasted as a crunchy snack, chickpea bars (check out my Chickpea Blondies recipe here!) – you name it, I’ve probably tried it! But a Chickpea SOUP was one I had yet to tick off my list – until now! This recipe is super quick to make and is a comforting bowl of warm spicy goodness. I can’t wait for you guys to try it!

Recipe (Serves 3-4 as a lunch/starter or light dinner)

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely diced
• 1.5 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1.5 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• 1 tsp dried coriander leaf
• 1/4 tsp mild chili powder
• 1 red onion, peeled and diced
• 1 x 400g tin of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 1 x 400g tin of chopped tomatoes
• 1 red bell pepper, core and seeds removed and diced into small pieces
• Juice of 1/2 Lemon
• 1 tbsp honey
• 300ml vegetable stock
• Optional: 2 tbsp tahini (but I highly recommend adding it!)
• Seasoning: A pinch of sea salt and a twist of black pepper

Method

1. Dice up your onion, garlic and red pepper, and set aside.
2. Heat the olive oil in a pot on a medium heat, and then add the onions, garlic, cumin seeds and red pepper. Sweat the onions and cook for 3-4 minutes until the onions are translucent.
3. Add the remaining spices and lemon juice, and cook for another 4-5 minutes.
4. Add the chopped tomatoes, chickpeas, honey, tahini and stock, and stir everything up.
5. Bring to the boil, and then turn down the heat and simmer the soup for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
6. When the ten minutes are up, you’re good to go! Tuck in!

Enjoy guys! Tag me if you try this one out – @theirishbalance on Instagram/Twitter/Facebook!

Ciara 🙂 x