Recipe: Tomato Chickpea Soup

It is dreary.  It has been raining on an off for what seems like forever.  It is supposed to be fall, but all this rain and temperatures hitting the 80s don’t exactly scream hot cider and sweaters.  However, none of this stopped me from making some soup for dinner on Friday of last week.  I wanted something comforting but easy, so I threw together this soup.  It was great because almost all of the ingredients can be kept in the cupboard. 

Tomato and chickpea soup

One onion- diced

2 teaspoons olive oil

1 tablespoon dried oregano

A pinch of red pepper flakes

28 ounce can of tomatoes- I used crushed with basil but I think diced would be better

15 ounce can chickpeas (drained and rinsed)

Salt and pepper to taste

Water

Heat olive oil over medium-high heat in a large pot.  Sauté onion for 4-5 minutes, until translucent.  Sprinkle oregano over onion and stir for 30 seconds.  Pour in tomatoes and chickpeas and one cup of water.  Let simmer for 30-40 minutes.  Using either a stick blender, puree the soup until smooth.  Season with salt and pepper.  Use water to get the soup to the consistency you prefer- I used an additional cup and half.   Simmer for an additional five minutes.

I split this into four servings, and served with a Panini made with sourdough bread and herbed goat cheese inside.  The gooeyness of the cheese really complimented the soup well.  It would also be good served with toasted bread for dipping or parmesan crisps.