When my friend Kristin posted this amazing soup on her blog the other day, I knew I wanted to share it with all of our Healthy, Tasty, Cheap readers as well!
Kristin is an experienced chef with a passion for nutrition. She is always coming up with great budget friendly healthy recipes. Be sure to check out her blog and this wonderful guest post to see how talented she is for yourself:
When asked to pick my favorite legume, I never skip a beat in answering “chickpeas”. So when Gillian asked me to do a guest post this week, I couldn’t turn it down.
These versatile little beans are nutrition powerhouses, packed with heaps of protein and fiber, can be transformed into a multitude of delicious dips, dishes and sides and best of all? They’re dirt cheap. I find myself buying bags of dried chickpeas on nearly all of my weekly grocery trips, and never fail to use them within the week’s menus. Canned organic chickpeas always find a place in my cupboard, and are indispensible for quick meals.
I like to make a big batch of hummus on a Sunday to start my week off with a healthy home-made dip for snacking or topping salads. I love roasting chickpeas in olive oil, spices and a hint of sea salt to throw on top of my massaged kale salads, throwing a handful into some quinoa with some fresh chopped veggies, or my favorite- using them in stews.
I came up with this soup on a whim one day and was surprised at the bold flavors coming from such a simple stew, disappointed I only made two servings of it. So learn from my mistakes- make it, but double the recipe 
[box]Moroccan-spiced Chickpea Carrot Soup
- Ingredients:
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 small onion, diced
- 4 medium carrots, chopped small
- 1 large clove (or 2 small) garlic
- 1/4 tsp cumin
- 1/4 tsp coriander
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon
- 1/8 tsp tumeric
- 1/8 tsp paprika
- 1/8 tsp ginger
- pinch saffron (if you have it, can be omitted)
- 1 can chickpeas (or 2 cups cooked), rinsed
- 1 medium vine ripe tomato, chopped
- 1 tsp sea salt, more to taste
- black pepper, to taste
- 1 tablespoon fresh squeezed lemon juice
- 3 cups water
- small handful almonds, chopped
- 2 tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped
1. Heat the oil on medium heat. Add onion and cook until translucent. Add carrot and continue cooking until softened, stirring occasionally. Add garlic and stir, cook for one minute. Add all spices and “toast” for 1-2 minutes.
2. Add tomato and chickpeas, stir to mix with onion and spice mixture. Add salt, black pepper to taste and lemon juice. Stir well and pour in water.
3. Bring water to a boil, reduce heat and simmer partially covered 20-30 minutes. Season to taste. Top with a sprinkle of almond and fresh cilantro. Serve hot.
Serves two.
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If you’re interested in writing a guest post sharing a recipe for our ingredient of the week, or your favourite healthy, tasty, cheap cooking or shopping tips let us know! We love hearing from you!
{ 1 comment… read it below or add one }
Yum! I love carrot soups and this one sounds especially amazing! Thanks so much for contributing Kristin!