Mediterranean Soup

4.97 from 27 votes

This warming and protein-packed chickpea soup comes together in less than 30 minutes and makes a healthy, quick yet delicious dinner. Plus, it's made from scratch with cheap store cupboard staples and spinach from the freezer!

Prep Time5

Cook Time30

Total Time35

Course: Main Course, Soup

Cuisine: Mediterranean, vegan

Keyword: mediterranean soup

Servings:

Calories: 314kcal

Author: Katia

Ingredients

1 ½ tablespoon olive oil
1 onion, peeled and diced
2 carrots, peeled and diced
1 celery rib, diced
2-3 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon oregano
¼ teaspoon thyme
2 cans (14oz - 400 gr each) chickpeas, drained
1 can (14oz - 400 gr) whole or diced tomatoes
2 ½ cup (600 ml) low-sodium vegetable broth
¾ teaspoon salt
⅛ teaspoon black pepper
2 bay leaves (optional)
1 tablespoon flour
6 oz (170 grams) fresh spinach (or 3 oz frozen)
1 to 2 tablespoon fresh lemon juice, or to taste (optional)

Instructions

Heat the olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the diced onion, carrot, and celery. Cook, stirring often, until the onion has softened and is turning translucent, about 5 minutes.
Next, stir in the garlic, paprika, oregano and thyme. Cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.
Add the chickpeas, tomatoes, broth, salt, pepper, and bay leaves. Raise the heat and bring the mixture to a boil, then cover the pot, reduce the heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Remove the bay leaves.
Add the flour and ¼ cup of cold water to a jar with a lid, shake until emulsified, and stir in the soup. Next, add the fresh spinach, a handful at a time, and stir until wilted (if using frozen, increase the cooking time accordingly). Turn the heat off.
Finish with lemon juice, then taste and season with more salt, pepper, and lemon juice until the flavours really sing.
Divide into bowls, drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and a pinch of red pepper flakes if you like, and add grated parmesan cheese if you don't want to keep it vegan. Serve with crusty bread. Enjoy!

Notes

If you use a broth that tastes quite salty on its own, it's important to adjust the seasoning at the end rather than at the beginning, as you never really know how strong the salt from the broth is. I would start only with 1/2 tsp, no more than that.

Leftovers: They keep well in the fridge for up to 3-4 days. They’re also freezable: Divide among airtight containers (leaving 1-inch space at the top) and freeze for up to 2 months.

Nutrition facts: the nutrition values are for one serving and they are based on an online nutrition calculator. It’s an estimate only and it should not be considered as a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. Please see my disclosure policies.

Nutrition