Chickpea Noodle Soup

Suitable for vegans and vegetarians. Serves 2 as a main or 4 as a starter/side.

This recipe is a variation on Antonio Carluccio's recipe for Ciceri e Tria in his cookbook on pasta. I love this recipe not only because it is utterly delicious, but because it is one of the rare examples of a classic Italian dish that is vegan. This is a great stand-in for chicken noodle soup.

Ingredients:

• 400g chickpeas (or 2 cans, drained and washed), 
• 300g tagliatele or other wide flat noodles, 
• 300g fresh cherry tomatoes, chopped in half, 
• 6 cloves of garlic, 
• 2 tsp dried oregano, 
• 0.5 tsp chilli flakes, 
• 500ml water, 
• 500ml vegetable stock, 
• 1 cup torn basil. 

Method:

• Drain and wash chickpeas. Set aside half of them. Place the remaining chickpeas in a blender or food processor and blitz with a tbsp or two of water into a fine paste. Adding the chickpea paste along with the whole chickpeas will help to thicken the soup and add a nicer texture.
• Place a large pot over medium high heat with 2 tbsp of olive oil.
• Add the tomatoes and cook down for 5-6 minutes. They should be quite shrivelled and expelling a lot of liquid.
• Add the garlic, oregano, and chilli flakes and cook for 2-3 minutes or until fragrant.
• Add the chickpeas along with the chickpea paste and mix to combine.
• Slowly add the water and stock. Mix thoroughly to incorporate the chickpea paste.
• Simmer for 20 minutes.
• Add the pasta and cook in the soup until al dente (around 10 minutes for dried pasta and around a minute for fresh).
• Add fresh basil and mix to combine. Season well with salt and pepper.
• Serve while hot with a drizzle of olive oil and a garnish of fresh basil.