Pumpkin and Chickpeas Combine For the Creamiest Vegan Soup Ever
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Around here, we make pureed chickpea soups a lot. They are filling, creamy, and usually can be made in a flash with a handful of pantry staples. One of my favorites during the Summer time is a pint of cherry tomatoes, a can of chickpeas, and a few cloves of garlic whirled up in the blender and heated through on the stovetop. But during the Fall, I'm craving cozier ingredients like caramelized onion and pumpkin. This recipe requires little-to-no effort and appeals to almost every dietary preference under the sun — dairy-free, vegan, and gluten-free. The best part of the soup has to be the crunchy chickpeas on top, made by roasting the legumes in a high-heat oven. You'll have leftovers to snack on, but that's not really something to complain about.
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Pumpkin-Chickpea Soup
From Anna Monette Roberts, POPSUGAR Food
INGREDIENTS
- For crunchy chickpeas:
- 1 (15-ounce) can chickpeas, rinsed and patted dry
- Olive oil, to taste
- 1 teaspoon seasoning of your choice, optional
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- For soup:
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
- 1 large white onion, cut in half-moon slices toward the grain
- Pinch of sugar
- 4 garlic cloves, skins removed
- 4 cups vegetable broth, divided
- 1 (15-ounce) can chickpeas
- 1 can pumpkin puree
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- Olive oil, for garnish
INSTRUCTIONS
Preheat the oven to 400ºF. Lay out chickpeas on a nonstick half sheet pan and roast for 25-35 minutes, or until crunchy.
Heat a large soup pot over medium-high heat, and melt oil. Add onion and caramelize using these instructions. Add a pinch of salt and sugar to the onions and allow onions to brown on one side, then flip them in one move and do not stir again, allowing onions to brown on other side. Add garlic cloves, stir, and cook for 1-2 minutes, until garlic becomes fragrant and slightly brown. Add 2 cups broth and scrape up the brown bits stuck to the bottom of the pan using a wooden spoon.
Turn off heat, add chickpeas, and use an immersion blender to blend the soup until smooth. Alternatively, transfer soup in batches to a blender, and blend until smooth. Once soup is completely smooth, stir in pumpkin puree. Turn flame back on to medium-high heat and bring soup to a simmer. Thin out with more broth as needed. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Once chickpeas have finished roasting, toss them in olive oil to lightly coat then season with salt, pepper, and your choice of seasoning.
Ladle soup into bowls and garnish with a drizzling of olive oil, 1/4 cup of crunchy chickpeas, and a crack of freshly ground pepper.