My first boss used to joke that I might be happy if my diet mainly consisted of baby food. He said this because I like mushy foods, which I eat a lot at work: fried black bean sauce, nut butter, and hummus. Especially hummus.
Over time, my love for milk hasn’t changed at all. If anything, it’s gotten deeper. I like mushy dips, mushy porridge, soft/mushy cereal dishes, crushed beans, mushy soups, and stews. This applies especially to soya milk soup: the thicker, the better, which means its texture can sometimes hover between soupy and mushy.
This creamy roasted garlic and chickpea soup feels smooth and smooth, and the addition of tender greens gives it some texture contrast. But it does have that chunky texture that I like, and because it’s based on roasted garlic and chickpeas with a bit of lemon, it’s similar to hummus soup. I just gave it a slightly fancier name 🙂
The soup begins with two heads of roasted garlic. It sounds like a lot, but I call it that because I used only a single head of garlic the first time I made soup. I love the taste, but adding twice as much roasted garlic would work fine. The roasted garlic doesn’t have the spiciness of raw garlic, which lends a mellow sweetness to the soup. If you are very sensitive to garlic, feel free to reduce the amount, but if your garlic head is medium or small, you will likely find that two is just right.
Otherwise, this soup is super simple. Roasting garlic is the most time-consuming step. Once that’s done, saute some chickpeas and Onions, add the broth and salt, and mix it all together. Here’s how it all fits together.
Ingredients
2 heads garlic, top cut crosswise
2 tablespoons olive oil (plus 1 tablespoon for sprinkling)
1 yellow onion, chopped
3 cups cooked chickpeas (480g, or two 15oz / 425g cans, drained and rinsed)
4 cups vegetable soup (950mL)
water
Half a teaspoon of acceptable salt, to taste
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
Freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 Small bunch of dark leafy greens such as spinach, beets, kale, broccoli, or collard greens (about 4-5 cups chopped and tightly packed after preparation)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Lightly drizzle olive oil over the garlic. Wrap each garlic head in foil and bake for 45 minutes until the cloves are caramelized and the garlic is fragrant.
- Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion. Cook for 5-7 minutes, stirring often, or until the onion is soft and transparent. Add the chickpeas, broth, 1 cup (240mL) water, salt and pepper. Cover the pot and let the mixture simmer.
- Transfer the pan mixture to a strong mixer. Squeeze two roasted garlic cloves into a blender. Turn the ingredients to high heat and stir until smooth. Be careful when stirring, as the hot soup will splatter. You can also use an immersion blender for this step.
- Return the soup to the pot and bring to a simmer. Add the greens and cook for another 7-10 minutes or until the greens are tender. If the soup is too thick, stir in freshly squeezed lemon juice (1-2 TBSP) and add another cup of water (240 ml). Adjust salt and pepper to taste. Service.
When I first made this soup, it was a season of peak and trough temperatures, sunny days, and drizzle. I’ve often enjoyed it for lunch with a large piece of homemade sourdough and salad. It feels like the perfect transition meal between winter and spring: it’s still warm and warm enough thanks to the chickpea base, but it also feels fresh with its texture, spring green, and lemon.
I’ll do it again soon, as New York enjoys its usual April weather. While I love the chickpeas here, I’d love to try it with white beans, too.
We hope you have a smooth transition to a different season this week. We’ll see you on Sunday in our roundup.
