Lemony Orzo Chickpea Soup
This Lemony Orzo Chickpea Soup recipe is a vegetarian spin on Greek avgolemono soup. It is comfy yet mild, brightened up with a great deal of lemon juice and fresh herbs, also make additional creamy by a couple of eggs to the broth (rather than cream).
Ingredients
- 10 cups vegetable stock
- 2 15 oz cans chickpeas rinsed and drained
- 4 eggs
- 1 cup orzo
- 3 medium carrots diced
- 5 cloves garlic minced
- 2 large handfuls fresh baby spinach
- ½ cup freshly-squeezed lemon juice or more lemon slices for serving
- 1-3 tbsp chopped fresh dill
- 1 small white onion peeled and diced
- sea salt and freshly-cracked black pepper
- 1 tbsp olive oil
Instructions
- Heat oil in a large-stockpot over medium-high-heat. Then add onion and sauté for 3 minutes, stirring periodically.
- Add garlic and carrots and sauté for 5 minutes, stirring periodically.
- Add chickpeas and stock, stir to blend. Keep on cooking till the soup reaches a simmer. Then reduce heat to moderate (or medium-low), keep up a continuous low-simmer.
- Add orzo and stir to blend. Keep on cooking until the orzo is al dente, stirring occasionally so the orzo does not stick to the base of the pan.
- Meanwhile, the orzo is cooking, whisk together the lemon juice and eggs in another mixing-bowl or measuring cup till blended.
- Ladle out 1 cup of the hot soup broth and while whisking the egg mix, drizzle the broth to the eggs till blended. Repeat with 1 cup of warm broth.
- When the orzo is prepared to go, remove the stockpot from the heat. Subsequently while stirring the whole soup, very slowly drizzle the egg mix to the soup till blended. The egg mix ought to produce the soup creamy and nice.
- Return the soup to heat. Stir in the spinach and dill and simmer for 1-2 minutes till the spinach has wilted. Subsequently taste and season the soup with a couple of pinches of salt and pepper, as required.
- Serve warm, garnished with extra dill and lemon wedges.
Notes
You can replace orzo with ¾ cup rice.
If you are not a huge fan of dill, then don't hesitate to add some fresh or dried oregano rather, to preference. Or fresh basil!