Spicy Chickpea Soup Inspired by Turkish Leblebi (lablabi) - how to cook chickpeas into a soup. This chickpea stew is vegan and comes with lots of optional condiments to serve with it. From Deborah Madison's "The New Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone"
Chickpea Soup with Condiments
2 cups chickpeas, soaked
1 tablespoon olive oil, plus more to finish
2 bay leaves
1 onion, finely diced
6 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
2 teaspoons sea salt
1/5 teaspoons cumin
2 tablespoons Harissa
freshly milled pepper
Condiments:
4 thick slices day-old country bread or pita bread, torn into pieces
6 lemon wedges
1 bunch green onions, including half the greens, sliced into rounds
Capers, rinsed
Harissa
2 hard-cooked eggs, diced, optional
Pickled turnips, available at Middle Eastern markets
[Soak 1 cup dried chickpeas overnight] Drain the chickpeas and set them aside.Heat the oil in a soup pot with the bay leaves, add the onion, and cook over medium heat until softened, 5-7 minutes. Add the chickpeas and 10 cups of water and bring to a boil. Simmer, covered, until the beans are soft but not completely cooked, about 1 hour. Or, cook in a pressure cooker.
Meanwhile, pound the garlic in a mortar with 1 teaspoon of the salt, the cumin, and the harissa until smooth or use a knife to mince. Add to the chickpeas along with the remaining 1 teaspoon salt, the continue cooking until they're fully soft, 15-30 minutes.
Put a few pieces of bread in each bowl, ladle the chickpeas along with the broth over it, then serve with the condiments arrayed in little dishes. Dribble over a little olive oil and finish with salt and pepper.
