Minestra De Ceci (Italian Chickpea and Pasta Soup)
"Found online; posting for ZWT 7-Italy. Recipe states: Minestra di ceci is a simple and nourishing soup from the Tuscan region of Italy. It goes together quickly and is great for a rainy day. Serve it with a nice chunk of crusty bread for a full meal."
- Ready In:
- 45mins
- Ingredients:
- 8
- Serves:
-
4-6
ingredients
- 2 cups chickpeas, cooked and rinsed
- 5 cups stock or 5 cups water
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 sprig fresh rosemary, chopped
- 2 -3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 cup tomatoes, chopped
- salt and pepper
- 1⁄2 cup soup pasta (see variations)
directions
- Puree half the chickpeas with 1 cup of the stock or water in a blender or food processor. Set aside.
- Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium flame. Add the garlic and rosemary and sauté until the garlic just begins to brown.
- Stir in the tomatoes and simmer for 3-5 minutes.
- Add the remaining stock, the chickpea puree and the remaining whole chickpeas.
- Season to taste with salt and pepper and simmer for 10 more minutes.
- Add the pasta and bring to a light boil until the pasta is cooked through, 8-10 minutes.
- Serve with crusty bread.
- *Variations.
- Use any small pasta for this soup: orzo, macaroni, shells. Or break spaghetti or capellini into small pieces.
- Stir in 2 cups chopped fresh spinach or chard in the last 5 minutes if you like.
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Reviews
-
OK - I improvised a bit based on the ingredients I had on hand, but this ended up being an absolutely OUTSTANDING soup and so easy to make. I used dried rosemary as I had no fresh (2 teaspoons) which I ground up a bit in my mortar and pestle, and I did saute it with the garlic (3 large cloves) in the olive oil. Next, I had only 1 fresh tomato to use, so chopped it and added about 1 cup of canned fire-roasted tomatoes (left over from another recipe) to the oil and sauteed that. Then followed the recipe as written, using chicken broth, adding 1 teaspoon sea salt and 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper, and using ditalini pasta and adding the 2 cups of fresh chopped spinach in the end. WOW - a delicately seasoned totally delicious soup. The rosemary adds fragrance and flavor yet does not overpower the soup and the garlic - just PERFECT. Absolutely DELICIOUS - so very glad I chose to make this recipe for ZWT7 - ITALY and the HOT PINK LADIES :)
RECIPE SUBMITTED BY
AZPARZYCH
Peoria, 41
<p><span><strong>I am a stay at home mom to two wonderful boys; Joshua (8years), Kaiden (5 years), and baby GIRL, Madalynn (19 months)! I also have two fur babies (cats); Kobee, AJ; we had to put our youngest cat Sly down Jan 2014. :(. I am also married to my best friend, Jeff and have been since April 2005. I love cooking, hate cleaning and will do whatever I can to get out of it! I love grilling and baking. I do most of the grilling at my house, and bake for almost a week straight at Christmas time! I can make or will attempt just about anything, though I rarely make brownies, my husband's are the best! Homemade breads are not my friend, so I am always working on bread baking.</strong></span></p>
<p><span><strong>As for recipe ideas (besides zaar) Cooking Light Cookbooks are my favorites. I love to make new meals and try new things; it is hard though because my husband is picky when it comes to veggies (and hates seafood); If it were up to him we would have baked-bread crumb chicken and white rice at least one meal a day! Over the past couple years with zaar, I have found tons of new recipes my family normally wouldn’t eat but have been happily surprised with new favorites.</strong></span></p>
<p><span><strong>I love to join in all of the tag games; I haven't been as present as I would like, but as soon as my Jeff is back from working in Ohio I will be back in full tagging mode! </strong></span></p>
<p><span><strong>Cooking is my hobby and passion, I always like to host the family get togethers and volunteer for the potluck dishes. Most of all though are my kids; being home all day with them is fun and challenging, but I wouldn’t trade it for any salary!!</strong></span></p>
