Gluten-Free & Vegetarian Recipes: SPANISH PEASANT SOUP

This colorful vegetarian Spanish Peasant Soup is a beautiful blend of garbanzo beans and fresh vegetables accented with paprika, turmeric, basil, cinnamon, and cayenne. It can be prepared in less than 45 minutes start to finish and perfect for a light alkalizing meal. Just one large bowl full will supply your body with three recommended daily servings of vegetables and one large recommended daily serving of beans. What more could you ask for? It is a nutritional powerhouse in an Impressionist landscape.  Enjoy some olives and Hail Merry Chimayo Chili Pecans while the soup simmers. Feed Your Body Royally!

VEGETARIAN SPANISH PEASANT SOUP

(From the Gluten-Free Good Health Cookbook)

6 Servings

2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cups chopped onion
2 cloves crushed garlic
2 cups sweet potatoes*, peeled and diced into 1 inch pieces
½ cup diced celery
1 cup diced tomatoes**
1 cup diced yellow peppers
1½ cups cooked chickpeas
3 cups of stock or water
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon basil
1 bay leaf
Dash of cinnamon
Dash of cayenne
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1. In a medium stockpot, heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Add onion, garlic, sweet potatoes, and celery. Sauté for 10 minutes. Add seasonings and stock.
2. Simmer, covered, for fifteen minutes. Add remaining vegetables and chickpeas. Cover and simmer another 15 minutes.
3. Remove bay leaf. Season with salt and pepper and serve hot.

Cook's note: One 15-ounce can of beans equals 1½ cups of cooked beans. One cup of dry beans yields 3 cups cooked. One pound of dry beans yields 6 cups cooked.

*Carrots or butternut squash can be substituted for sweet potatoes.
**Recommend Muir Glen® Organic Diced Fire Roasted Tomatoes.