Tomato Chickpea Arrabiatta

“…your soup smells like heaven!”

A Lovely Soup for the Release of Quality Counts 2012

It’s just the sort of email you want to read when it’s about your first crockpot dish ever. You see, I work on the first floor and the Art Department “kitchen” for the Lunch Bunch is on the second. When someone from the marketing department tells you this and they work clear on the other side of the building, you know there is great promise afoot.

Laura suggested that I take the helm on making the Lunch Bunch crockpot entrée this week—our first of the new year. I was hesitant, to say the least, but some office angel left us a “crock pot” recipe book and well, it had appealing recipes that I thought, “OK, I can do this.”

It’s awful that I take such cajoling, but crockpots and pressure cookers scare me. I can’t trust anything that cooks for 4-8 hours and still tastes fresh. Can the thing even get hot enough to cook properly? I mean, I’ve had other people’s creations and loved them, but somehow with me in charge…I was just worried.

Turns out there wasn’t anything to worry about.

My Morning Carrots--Ready for the Crockpot

PLAYPREV|NEXT1 of 15

But as you can imagine, me being as picky as I am, when Laura offered to chop up baby gouda and put it in the final product I got antsy. Discussing with Chef Charlie, he registered alarm as well. With a series of emails that have probably made me persona non grata in the Art Dept, Charlie lead the charge to avoid the cheese.

You see, the recipe had called for an umami ingredient: Parmesan cheese rinds. Now, you see, Charlie overnights in-town during the week and returns home to Spotsylvania, Virginia, on the weekends. He had a freezer full of Parm rinds, but didn’t have the opportunity to get them because of my lousy planning. Ah well, we all agreed to add in cheese on our own. This decision appears to have worked. But the question remains: have I caused drama in the Lunch Bunch over the subject of cheese? Future posts to come, I’m sure!

Here’s how you make this wonderfully aromatic brew:

Tomato Chickpea Soup Arrabiata

Serves 6 to 8

Ingredients

2 T olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

1 lb (2 c) dried chickpeas

2 medium carrots, peeled and diced

2 celery ribs, diced

1 (28oz) cans of crushed tomatoes

1 (6 oz) cans of tomato paste

7 c water

1 t red chile flakes

2 bay leaves

1 parmesan cheese rinds, or more if desired

2 T basil chiffonade

2 t chopped fresh oregano

2 t fresh thyme leaves

4 cloves of garlic

1/4 c chopped fresh parsley

Salt to taste

Winter Oregano, Fresh from Emily's Roof

“Chickpeas, or ceci as they are called in Italian, are found widely in the cucina povera (or peasant cuisine) of Italy and most countries in the Mediterranean,” says author Lynn Alley in her crockpot opus 50 Simple Soups for the Slow Cooker. “This soup is especially good if you have saved some Parmesan cheese rinds and can add them to the soup as it cooks. Mince the garlic in at the end to maximize its strength and flavor.”

• In large sauté pan, heat olive oil over medium heat, and cook onion for about 10 minutes. Lightly brown.

• Rinse chickpeas and place in 7-quart slow cooker. (We used canned chickpeas. If you do this, you need to adjust the amount of water down by about half. By doing so, you ensure a more stew-like consistency. If you do it as with the full seven cups of water, you are guaranteed a flavorful tomato soup, not a stew.)

• Add in the browned onions, carrots, celery, tomatoes, tomato paste, water, chile flakes, bay leaves, and Parmesan rind.

• Cover and cook on low for about 8 hours, or until chickpeas are tender.

• Add the fresh herbs at the end: oregano and thyme for the last thirty minutes.

• Using the garlic press, mince the garlic into the final soup,

• Season with salt to taste.

• Using a handheld immersion blender, pureé some of the mixture to thicken the soup. (Pureé about ¼ of the soup).

• Ladle into bowl, garnish with basil and parsley.

Lunch Bunch Maven Laura had a great idea worth mentioning here, “If I wanted something heartier, I would add cheese tortellini. You can buy this dried at Trader Joe’s.”

- See more at: http://www.alunchboxblog.com/tomato-chickpea-arrabiatta/?preview=true&preview_id=1568&preview_nonce=d94cd4a44b#sthash.Msje74E1.dpuf