Tomato Chickpea Soup

Dear Turkey,

The blog I read said:

"Best Italian comfort

Soup ever." Agreed

Tomato Chickpea Soup

(serves 6-8, thanks to Maria Rodale, again)

Ingredients:

- 1/4 c olive oil

- 4 cloves garlic, peeled but whole

- 1 big (28 oz) can diced or whole tomatoes, with their juice

- 2.5 c chickpeas, rinsed and drained (and remember what you can do with the liquid!)

- 1 4-inch stalk rosemary, stem removed

- 4 c veggie broth

- 1 c arborio rice

- salt and pepper, to taste

- 1/4 c lemon juice

- 1/4 c white wine

- parm and red pepper flakes, for garnish (optional)

Instructions:

- In a big pot with a lid, heat the garlic and oil until there is lots of bubbling going on. This is a bit scary. Keep the lid on as much as possible and remove from heat before the garlic starts to burn. It took me about 3 minutes. 

- Let it cool slightly (safety!), and add the tomatoes and their juice. Cook, covered, on low heat for 20-25 mins.

- Add the rosemary (not the stem), the chickpeas, and 1 c broth. Cook on low, covered, for 15 more minutes. 

- Use a hand blender to mostly (but not totally) blend up the soup. Make sure you get the garlic blended up.

- Add the rice and the remaining broth and cook on low, covered, for 20-25 more minutes, until the rice is done. This may require some stirring.

- Season with salt and pepper (I found that it took quite a bit, like, tablespoons -- but taste frequently!), and add the wine and lemon to taste. You may not want to use it all, but I think that soups like this need acid. Cook for a few more minutes to make the alcohol child-friendly.

- Top with parm and red peper flakes if you want.

Enjoy,

Tofu