Chickpea and chestnut soup
An autumn soup from the uplands of central Italy, where for centuries chestnuts were a staple food and chestnut flour stood in for wheat flour. Chickpeas cooked until tender, combined with a soffritto of olive oil, rosemary and garlic, plus chestnuts, which fall apart and thicken the soup. Part of it is blended, part left in pieces. The flavour is sweetish, nutty and earthy, with olive oil and rosemary for freshness. It is fully plant-based and very filling.
Your own work in that: 5 min.
- Soaking the chickpeas 720 min
- Cooking the chickpeas 90 min
- Soffritto 10 min
- Simmering with chestnuts 20 min
- Blending 5 min
- Toast 5 min
Step by step
0 / 8 doneSoak the chickpeas
Cover the chickpeas with plenty of cold water and leave overnight, for 10–12 hours.
Ingredients: 200 g dried chickpeas · 1 pcs bay leaf · 300 g cooked peeled chestnuts · 3 tbsp olive oil · 1 pcs onion · 1 pcs carrot · 1 pcs celery · 2 cloves garlic · 1 pcs rosemary sprig · 1 tbsp tomato paste · 1200 ml chickpea cooking water or stock · 1½ tsp salt · ½ tsp black pepper
Cook the chickpeas
Drain, cover with about 2 litres of fresh water, add the bay leaf and simmer gently 1½ hours, until completely tender. Keep the cooking water — you need 1.2 litres of it (top up with water if short).
Ingredients: 200 g dried chickpeas · 1 pcs bay leaf · 300 g cooked peeled chestnuts · 3 tbsp olive oil · 1 pcs onion · 1 pcs carrot · 1 pcs celery · 2 cloves garlic · 1 pcs rosemary sprig · 1 tbsp tomato paste · 1200 ml chickpea cooking water or stock · 1½ tsp salt · ½ tsp black pepper
The chickpeas should be soft right through — salt goes into the soup later.Make the soffritto
Finely chop the onion, carrot and celery. Fry them gently in the olive oil with the whole garlic cloves and rosemary sprig, about 8 minutes, until soft. Stir in the tomato paste and fry a minute.
Ingredients: 200 g dried chickpeas · 1 pcs bay leaf · 300 g cooked peeled chestnuts · 3 tbsp olive oil · 1 pcs onion · 1 pcs carrot · 1 pcs celery · 2 cloves garlic · 1 pcs rosemary sprig · 1 tbsp tomato paste · 1200 ml chickpea cooking water or stock · 1½ tsp salt · ½ tsp black pepper
Slowly, on low heat — the flavour base of the soup.Add chickpeas and chestnuts
Remove the rosemary and garlic. Add the drained chickpeas, the chestnuts broken into pieces and 1.2 litres of the cooking water. Season with salt (less if using stock) and half the pepper.
Ingredients: 200 g dried chickpeas · 1 pcs bay leaf · 300 g cooked peeled chestnuts · 3 tbsp olive oil · 1 pcs onion · 1 pcs carrot · 1 pcs celery · 2 cloves garlic · 1 pcs rosemary sprig · 1 tbsp tomato paste · 1200 ml chickpea cooking water or stock · 1½ tsp salt · ½ tsp black pepper
Broken chestnuts — they fall apart and thicken the soup.Simmer together
Simmer 20 minutes, stirring now and then, until the chestnuts start to break down.
Ingredients: 200 g dried chickpeas · 1 pcs bay leaf · 300 g cooked peeled chestnuts · 3 tbsp olive oil · 1 pcs onion · 1 pcs carrot · 1 pcs celery · 2 cloves garlic · 1 pcs rosemary sprig · 1 tbsp tomato paste · 1200 ml chickpea cooking water or stock · 1½ tsp salt · ½ tsp black pepper
Blend part of it
Take out a third of the soup, blend it smooth and return it. The soup should be thick but with pieces you can taste. If too thick, add water.
Ingredients: 200 g dried chickpeas · 1 pcs bay leaf · 300 g cooked peeled chestnuts · 3 tbsp olive oil · 1 pcs onion · 1 pcs carrot · 1 pcs celery · 2 cloves garlic · 1 pcs rosemary sprig · 1 tbsp tomato paste · 1200 ml chickpea cooking water or stock · 1½ tsp salt · ½ tsp black pepper
Toast the bread
Toast the bread slices in a dry pan, about 5 minutes, turning once (or in a hot oven), until crisp.
Ingredients: 4 pcs bread, slices · 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil for drizzling
Serve with olive oil
Ladle the soup into bowls, drizzle with extra virgin olive oil, grind over the rest of the pepper and serve with the toast.
Ingredients: 4 pcs bread, slices · 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil for drizzling
Before you start
Quick version
With canned chickpeas (2 cans of 400 g, drained) and vacuum-packed cooked chestnuts, the soup is ready in 40 minutes. Use vegetable stock instead of cooking water.
With pasta
In some regions a handful of small pasta, such as ditalini, is cooked in the soup for the last 10 minutes. Add about 300 ml of water then, as the pasta absorbs it.
Storage
The soup keeps 3 days in the fridge and freezes well. It thickens on reheating, so add a little water.
