North African Vegetable Soup With Chickpeas

MarissaB's Note:

Feel free to experiment with your own combinations of vegetables and spices in this. I like it with the quantities as described below, but this is an easy-to-tweak recipe, and it's fun to play with different flavors. Get creative!

• Total Time: 1 hrs
• Prep Time: 20 mins
• Cook Time: 40 mins

Ingredients:

Servings: 6

• 2 quarts water
• 2 cups cooked chickpeas
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 6 garlic cloves, thickly sliced
• 1/2 teaspoon chili pepper flakes
• 1 cup coarsely chopped onion
• 1/2 cup coarsely chopped carrot
• 2 1/2 cups coarsely chopped unpeeled sweet potatoes
• 2 cups bite-size cauliflower florets
• 1 teaspoon turmeric
• 3 cups coarsley chopped mustard greens
• 2 tablespoons dried basil
• 1 teaspoon sea salt

Directions:

1. Bring water, chickpeas, and cinnamon stick to boil in a 6-quart stockpot. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover. Simmer 10 to 15 minutes or until cinnamon stick uncurls.
2. While chickpeas simmer, heat oil in medium skillet over medium heat. Add garlic, chili, onions, and carrots. Saute, stirring occasionally for 5 minutes, or until onions begin to soften.
3. When the cinnamon stick uncurls, transfer sauteed vegetables to the stockpot along with sweet potatoes, cauliflower, and turmeric. Simmer covered for 20 minutes or until sweet potatoes and cauliflower are tender.
4. Add the mustard greens and continue to simmer for 2 to 3 minutes or until bright green. Stir in the basil and salt. Adjust the seasonings if desired.
5. Ladle hot soup into bowls and serve.

Reviews

[Maito]

This was a really good soup. I ended up using more vegetables than called for, so added more spices, like Madras Curry Powder and ground coriander. I also used broth and left out the salt. Topped it with lemon, peanuts and cilantro, which rounded it out nicely.