Recipes Chickpea Soup with Swiss Chard 5.0 (4,956) 5 Reviews The humble chickpea is enormously popular in Italy, especially for soups. Here, in this Tuscan specialty, it's joined by tomatoes, macaroni, Swiss-chard leaves and a generous quantity of garlic. Plus: More Soup Recipes By Food & Wine Updated on January 8, 2019 Print Rate It Share Share Tweet Pin Email Photo: © Emma Lee Yield: 4 Ingredients 6 cups drained and rinsed canned chickpeas (three 19-ounce cans) 3 cups canned low-sodium chicken broth or homemade stock, more if needed 3 tablespoons olive oil 1 carrot, chopped 1 onion, chopped 1 rib celery, chopped 4 cloves garlic, minced 1 teaspoon dried rosemary, or 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary 1 bay leaf Pinch dried red-pepper flakes 1 cup canned tomatoes in thick puree, chopped 1/2 cup tubetti or other small macaroni 1 teaspoon salt 1/2 pound Swiss chard, tough stems removed, leaves cut into 1-inch pieces 1/4 teaspoon fresh-ground black pepper Directions Puree half of the chickpeas with 1 1/2 cups of the broth in a blender or food processor. In a large pot, heat the oil over moderately low heat. Add the carrot, onion, celery, garlic, and rosemary and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables start to soften, about 5 minutes. Stir in the remaining 1 1/2 cups broth, the pureed chickpeas, whole chickpeas, bay leaf, red-pepper flakes, tomatoes, tubetti, and salt. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, partially covered, for 10 minutes. Add the Swiss chard to the pot. Simmer until the chard is tender and the pasta is done, 5 to 10 minutes longer. Remove the bay leaf. Stir in the black pepper. If the soup thickens too much on standing, stir in more broth or water. Suggested Pairing Since a red wine would accent the Swiss chard's bitterness, try a full-bodied Tocai Friulano. Its nutty flavor will mirror that of the chickpeas. Rate it Print