Chickpea Pasta Soup with a Split Pea Quinoa Twist

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3 tbsp EVOO
2 medium onions, small diced
1 tbsp dried thyme
6 cloves garlic, minced
1 28 oz can plum tomatoes and their juices
2 15 oz cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 quart (4 cups) veggie stock
4 cups filtered water
1 cup dried rigatoni (or your favorite short pasta) – optional
2 tsp sea salt
1 tsp ground black pepper
2 cups cooked quinoa (or the contents of 1 cup of dried quinoa, cooked)
2 cups cooked split peas (or the contents of 1 bag of split peas, cooked)

1. Heat up your oil on medium heat. Add in the onions and dried thyme. Let them saute for about 5 minutes or until translucent.

2. Add your garlic and toss for about 30-60 seconds, or until fragrant. Then add in your can of plum tomatoes. Using the tip of your silicone spatula, roughly “chop” the tomatoes into reasonable sized pieces. Let the mixture cook down for about 5 minutes.

3. Add your chickpeas. Using a potato masher, squish the chickpeas down so that 50-75% of the chickpeas are squished, and the remainder remain whole (don’t worry – it doesn’t have to be an exact science. We’re just going for texture here).

4. Turn the heat up to high and add in your stock and water. Add in your sea salt and pepper. Once the soup is boiling, add 1 cup of your favorite short pasta and cook until al dente (as per the instructions on the box). If you’re gluten free, pick a gluten free pasta. And if you don’t want the pasta, no problem – just leave it out and let the soup simmer on medium heat for about 20 minutes.

5. Adjust the seasonings and remove from the heat.

6. To serve, spoon a ladle or two of soup into a bowl, and top with 1/2 a cup each of cooked quinoa and split peas. Stir to combine. If you’re not vegan, add some Parmesan cheese to the party – it’s delicious! If you are, get some vegan Parmesan cheese, or else just enjoy as is.

This soup is AMAZING as leftovers because you can just heat up what you want in a pot over the stove, and it’s ready in 5 minutes! So feel free to double the recipe!

See the video: