
Chickpea Soup with Pancetta

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Chickpeas belong to the same legume family as beans and have been a favorite with Italians since Roman times. Their botanical name is Cicer arietinum, arietinum means ram-like, and if you look at a chickpea, it really looks like a perfect little rams head. They are grown mostly in the south, left to dry in the sun in their pods, then harvested at the right moment. Look for chickpeas that are creamy in texture, with a delicate thin, shiny, unwrinkled skin, and always soak them overnight, especially if they are a little old and dry, they can take a very long time to soften during cooking. If you like, you can cook some tortellini separately (or tagliatelle cut into short strips after cooking) and add it to the soup just before serving or you could even add some squid, quickly fried in a little garlic and oil, sprinkled with parsley.
ingredients
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serves: 4
1 carrot (finely chopped)
1 onion (finely chopped)
1 red onion (finely chopped)
1 stalk celery (finely chopped)
5-6 ounces pancetta (cut into strips)
1 tablespoon tomato paste
leaves rosemary and sage to garnish
salt and pepper
For the chickpeas:
1 1/4 cups chickpeas
1 stalk celery
4 cloves garlic (crushed)
1 sprig of rosemary
small bunch of sage
2 leaves bay
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive
oil, plus extra for sautéing and finishing
Servings Per Recipe: 4
Amount per Serving
Calories: 474
- Total Fat: 23.8 g
- Saturated Fat: 6.5 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Cholesterol: 24.1 mg
- Sodium: 382.3 mg
- Total Carbs: 50 g
- Dietary Fiber: 14.7 g
- Sugars: 10.9 g
- Protein: 18 g
preparation

comments
Serena
May 9, 2012