Creamy Vegan Chickpea Soup with Garlic and Herbs

This creamy vegan chickpea soup with garlic and herbs bursts with flavour and it's super easy to prepare. Made from just a handful of nutritious ingredients, it's a naturally vegan soup that's velvety and crunchy at the same time, thanks to the roasted chickpeas topping.

This is, without any shadow of a doubt, the best chickpea soup I've ever had. Fresh rosemary, thyme and garlic load it up with flavour, and the texture is creamy and chunky at the same time.

Every spoonful is beyond delicious, and what's even better, the soup is easy to make, economical, and packed with loads of nutrients. I'm not sure I'll ever make chickpea soup another way.

Serve this garlic chickpea soup with crusty bread, some focaccia or on its own. Either way, it makes a very satisfying lunch or even dinner.

What ingredients do you need?

Chickpeas — and lots of them! You'll need three tins of chickpeas for this recipe. One of them goes in the food processor to create the creamy element of the soup, half of another tin goes in the oven sprinkled with spices for the crunchy bits.

Onions, carrots and parsnip — these veggies are the basis of the soup. Saute them in a bit of olive oil to make a soffrito. Feel free to add some celery, too, if you want.

Fresh herbs — One tablespoon each of fresh thyme and fresh rosemary minced imbue this chickpea soup with amazing flavours. Mince them as finely as you can for maximum potency.

Garlic — I crush four cloves of garlic into this soup, which you'll love if you're a garlic fan. If you're not, you can use less of it and mince it instead of crushing it so it doesn't release such a robust flavour.

Vegetable stock — As always, make sure the stock you're using is suitable for vegans.

How do you make this creamy chickpea soup?

The soup is super easy to make, and it only takes about 40 minutes, but it involves a couple of steps.

• You start with three tins of chickpeas, but don't drain them all. Place the contents of a tin of chickpeas into a food processor or blender together with the liquid and blitz for 1-2 minutes until you obtain a smooth paste. Set aside.
• Next, open the other two tins of chickpeas and drain them.
• Take ½ of a tin out (about 120 grams or 1 cup) and add the chickpeas to a bowl together with 1 tsp olive oil, some garam masala and a pinch of salt and pepper.
• Mix them well, then scatter the chickpeas on a baking tray and roast for 20 minutes in the oven at 190°C/375°F.

While the chickpeas are roasting, it's time to make the soup.

• In a large pot, heat some olive oil and saute the onion, carrot and parsnip until softened.
• Add the garlic and herbs, and then stir in the chickpeas paste.
• Add the rest of the drained chickpeas and vegetable stock, bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 15-20 minutes with a lid on.
• Season to taste, divide into bowls and sprinkle each of them with roasted chickpeas. Serve on its own or with crusty bread.

Recipe tips and notes

• You can add a tin of white beans instead of chickpeas or substitute all the chickpeas in the soup with white beans.
• If you want some greens in the soup, stir in some kale or baby spinach at the end.
• Fresh herbs work best in this soup, but you can substitute them with dried thyme or rosemary in a pinch.
• To make the soup even chunkier and filling, add 1-2 medium potatoes cut in 1-2 cm cubes.
• This easy vegetable chickpeas soup keeps well in the fridge, in an airtight container, for up to 3-4 days. You can also freeze it in airtight containers for up to three months.

If you liked this creamy vegan chickpea soup with garlic and herbs recipe, you may also enjoy:

Lemon Chickpea Orzo Soup

Easy Chickpea Tikka Masala

Sweet Potato Chickpea Stew

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