May 04 2008
Moroccan Spiced Chickpea Soup
Soups and stews make fantastic meals. They’re extremely versatile, and just as importantly, they’re easy to make. The following is a recipe for my favorite soup which was featured on the Food Network show Good Deal with Dave Lieberman. The unique combination of spices gives this recipe a bold, interesting flavor that you’ll find yourself craving again and again. Go ahead and make a whole pot. The left-overs are delicious!
Ingredients
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for garnish
1 large onion, medium diced
6 to 8 cloves garlic, pressed
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 heaping teaspoon sweet paprika
1 (14.5-ounce) can chopped tomatoes
3 (15-ounce) cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed well
1 quart vegetable broth or reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 teaspoon sugar
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 (5-ounce) package pre-washed baby spinach
Directions
Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic and saute until the onions begin to turn translucent; lower heat if browning starts to occur. Add spices and saute a minute or so. Add tomatoes, chickpeas, broth, and sugar. Season with a couple pinches of salt and 10 grinds fresh pepper. Stir well. Chickpeas should be just covered with liquid. If level is shy, add some water so the chickpeas are just covered.
Bring to a simmer, then lower heat to low and gently simmer for 45 minutes.
Remove soup from heat. Use a potato masher to mash up some of the chickpeas right in the pot. Stir in the spinach and let heat through until wilted, just a couple minutes.
Season again, to taste, with salt and pepper.
Serve soup, drizzled lightly with extra-virgin olive oil, if desired.
2 Responses to “Moroccan Spiced Chickpea Soup”
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How do you think it would be sans black pepper? John loves spicy food. I like certain kinds of spiciness…like I love salsa and I hated everything I ate in New Orleans except corn bread. Ha ha. It sounds really good though. I am going to follow your blog so maybe I can learn to cook stuff! =)
I think it would be fine without the black pepper - especially if you don’t like it anyway! If there is ever anything in a recipe that doesn’t sound good to you, you should just take it out or substitute something else for it. I do that all the time, and I alway like what I make. There’s no point in making food you ALMOST like.