Spring Chickpea Soup is an easy one pot soup, ready to eat in 30 minutes or less! This soup is packed full of fresh veggies and tons of flavor from lemon and herbs!
Heat the olive oil in a large soup pot or dutch oven over medium heat.
Meanwhile, remove the woody ends from the asparagus, and roughly chop the asparagus into small pieces.
Place the green onions on a large cutting board and chop the white parts only for the soup. Set the green leafy part aside for another use if desired.
To the hot oil, add the asparagus, onions, chickpeas, garlic, salt & pepper, dill, turmeric, ginger, and red pepper flakes.
Cook, stirring constantly for 3-5 minutes until onions have softened.
Pour the broth into the pot along with the pasta. Bring the soup to a boil, then reduce the heat back to medium and simmer for 10-12 minutes until pasta is soft.
Stir in the peas, spinach, and lemon juice and cook for 2-3 more minutes until spinach is wilted. Serve immediately.
INSTANT POT VERSION:
Heat the oil on saute mode in the instant pot insert.
Add in the chopped asparagus, onions, chickpeas, garlic, salt, pepper, dill, turmeric, ginger, and red pepper flakes. Cook, stirring constantly for about 5 minutes until onions are soft.
Turn the pot off. Pour the broth into the pot and use a wooden spoon to scrape up any browned bits if necessary.
Place the lid on the pot and set the valve to the sealed position. Cook on MANUAL (PRESSURE COOK) setting for 5 minutes. Allow pressure to release naturally for 2 minutes, then do a quick release.
Open the pot and stir in the spinach and peas. Stir occasionally for 2-3 minutes until the spinach is wilted. Serve immediately.
Notes
NOTE ON PASTA: The 1 Cup of pasta is optional in this recipe. I used Orecchiette pasta but any short cut pasta such as ditalini, macaroni, or small shells work fine.NOTE ON CHICKPEAS: You can use dried chickpeas if you wish, but, plan ahead. You will need to prepare the dried chickpeas as directed on the package before adding them to this soup recipe.NOTE ON SERVING: We like to serve this with extra lemon for squeezing, a dollop of sour cream or plain greek yogurt, and chopped chives or green onion.