Spiced Courgette and Chickpea Soup

Ingredients

• 800 Courgettes, cut into 2cm chunks
• 400 g Tinned chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 1 Onion, finely chopped
• 4 Garlic cloves, crushed
• 1000 ml Vegetable stock, hot
• 400 g Tinned chopped tomatoes
• 2 tsp Ground cumin
• 1 tsp Ground coriander
• 1 tsp Smoked paprika
• 2 tbsp Olive oil
• 1 tsp Salt
• 1 pinch Black pepper, freshly ground
• 15 g Fresh coriander, roughly chopped (optional)
• 1 tbsp Extra virgin olive oil, for drizzling (optional)

Method

1. Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy-based saucepan over a medium heat. Add the chopped onion and a pinch of salt and cook, stirring occasionally, for 8 minutes until softened and beginning to turn golden.About 8 min
2. Add the crushed garlic, ground cumin, ground coriander and smoked paprika to the pan. Stir and cook for 2 minutes until fragrant.About 2 min
3. Add the courgette chunks and stir to coat in the spiced oil. Cook for 3 minutes, stirring a couple of times, to give the courgette a little colour.About 3 min
4. Pour in the tinned tomatoes and the hot vegetable stock. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat to a steady simmer and cook for 12 minutes until the courgette is completely tender.About 15 min
5. Add the drained chickpeas. Using a stick blender, blend roughly half the soup directly in the pan — about 6 to 8 short pulses — so you have a mixture of smooth and chunky. Alternatively, ladle half into a blender, blend until smooth, and return to the pan.About 2 min
6. Taste and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper. Ladle into bowls and serve with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and scattered fresh coriander if using.About 1 min