TAYO'S FRAGRANT CHICKPEA SOUP

A good friend was in town for a few days and so I decided to treat her to some lunch - vegan style! I came up with this recipe and named it after her. I'm glad to report that it went down a treat. The broth is light and fragrant; the chickpeas and pasta make it filling and wholesome. I consider this recipe a bit of a fusion dish because I used some Japanese miso paste to give it a lift.

I used fresh chickpeas which made the cooking time quite long. Canned chickpeas work if you're short on time.

Ingredients

1 cup wholewheat pasta of your choice

1 cup fresh chickpeas (or a can of cooked chickpeas)

2 fresh tomatoes (chopped)

4 cups of water

2 tbsp chopped ginger

1 cup chopped spinach

1 tbsp organic miso paste*

1/4 scotch bonnet pepper (optional, if you don't want the heat!)

If you're using fresh chickpeas, be sure to soak them overnight. Boil them in fresh water for 2-3 hours or until soft.

Start to build up the soup: add all the ingredients - except the miso paste - to a large pot and simmer on very low heat for an hour. 

Stir in the miso paste and bring the soup to a boil for a further 10 minutes, making sure the paste is well dissolved.

Enjoy!

*Don't fret if you don't have immediate access to miso paste, vegetable stock cubes are a good replacement.