CHICKPEA LEMON ORZO SOUP
This soup is a play on the traditional Greek Soup known as "Avgolemono." While the traditional version features a chicken, lemon, and rice base and uses an egg to get its signature creamy consistency I made one entirely with plants! The actual "avgolemono" refers to a lemon, broth, and egg sauce that gets added to the soup base to make it creamy and truly is the most flavorful part of this soup. Let me know if you give this Mediterranean dish a try!
This recipe is surprisingly simple for the flavor you will achieve. All you will need is your classic mire poux base (onions, carrots, and celery), orzo, chickpeas, lemons, spinach, broth, a few herbs, some plant milk, a pot, and about 30 minutes.
One of my favorite parts about this recipe is adding in an entire box of spinach and just watching it disappear. This soup is packed with both micronutrients and fiber from the greens, veggies, and chickpeas! You can even use a whole wheat orzo to bump up the nutrition even more!
Ok, but the REAL star of the show here is the lemon juice! You might not think to add lemon juice to soup but the brightness truly brings out all of the other flavors in this soup and somehow makes it even cozier. Not to mention the combination of the lemon, dill, and oregano makes it taste so fresh and light.
CHICKPEA LEMON ORZO SOUP RECIPE
Time: 30 min
Yield: 6 servings
Ingredients:
2 tbsp olive oil
1 large white or yellow onion, diced
2 large carrots, diced
2 large celery stalks, diced
3 cloves of garlic, minced
the juice of 2 large or 3 small lemons
6 cups of vegetable broth
1 cup of orzo
1 cup of unsweetened soy or cashew milk
2 15oz cans of chickpeas, rinsed and drained
6 cups loosely packed spinach
1 tsp dried or 1 tbsp chopped fresh dill
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp salt
Directions:
In a pot on medium/low heat add the olive oil, once hot; add the carrots, celery, and onion cooking until onion begins to soften, about 5 minutes. Next add the garlic and cook for another minute. Next add the herbs, salt, orzo, and a splash of broth. Allow to cook for another few minutes until herbs become fragrant.
Next add the remaining broth and chickpeas. Reduce heat to low and let simmer for 10-15 minutes until orzo is cooked through.
Remove from heat and add in the lemon juice and plant milk stirring constantly till well combined. Then add your spinach, stirring till wilted.
Top with some fresh cracked pepper, fresh dill, and serve with crusty bread and enjoy :)
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