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Healthy Recipe: Spicy Chickpea & Lentil Soup

By Latham Thomas

This soup is said to have warmed the Berbers duing the cold winters in the Atlas mountains. Serve with a small side of brown rice and keep yourself toasty during the winter. If you don’t have time to soak and boil the beans, (which none of us busy ladies do,) you may opt to use canned chickpeas and frozen fava beans. This is one of our favorite dishes.

You’ll need:

3 tbsp olive oil
2 onions sliced
½ tsp ground ginger
½ tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp ground cinnamon
pinch of saffron threads
2  14oz cans of chopped tomatoes
2 tsp agave nectar
¾ cup brown or green lentils, rinsed
7 ½ cups vegetable stock or water
1 generous cup dried chickpeas soaked overnight, drained, boiled until tender
1 generous cup dried fava beans soaked overnight, drained, boiled until tender
1 small bunch cilantro
1 small bunch Italian parsley
salt & fresh ground pepper

Heat the olive oil in a large pan, add the onions and stir over low heat for 15 minutes (or until soft and translucent). Add the ginger, tumeric, cinnamon and saffron, then add the tomatoes and agave. Stir in the lentils and pour in the stock or water. Bring the liquid to a boil, reduce the heat, cover and simmer for about 25 minutes until lentils are tender. Stir in the cooked chickpeas, bring back to a boil, then simmer again for 10-15 minutes. Stir in the fresh herbs and season to taste. Serve piping hot.

Try these healthy recipes from Latham too!
-  Gingerly Mashed Sweet Potatoes with Lime
-  Raw Coconut Fudge