Bright + Lemony Orzo Soup with Chickpeas
Bursting with fresh lemon flavour, this brothy orzo soup with chickpeas and plenty of dill is so easy (ready in about 35 minutes!) and the perfect light yet balanced plant-based dinner.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion diced
- ½ small fennel bulb diced, or sub 2 ribs celery
- 2 medium carrots diced
- 5 cloves garlic chopped
- 7 cups water
- 2 tablespoons Better than Bouillon vegetarian chicken concentrate sub gluten free broth in place of BTB + water for a GF option
- 1 large bay leaf
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- 2-14 ounce cans chickpeas rinsed and drained
- 1 cup orzo pasta sub dry or leftover rice for GF option
- ½ cup fresh dill finely chopped
- 1 medium lemon zested and juiced (about ¼ cup juice)
- 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Warm oil in a soup pot over medium heat. Add the fennel, onion and carrots and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and glossy, about 8-10 minutes.
- Add garlic and stir often for one minute. Season with salt and pepper.
- Add water, bouillon concentrate, chickpeas, bay leaf and oregano and bring to a boil on high.
- Once boiling, add orzo and turn heat back down to medium. Simmer until tender, 12-15 minutes.
- Turn off heat, add nutritional yeast, lemon juice, zest and dill. Stir and taste. Adjust lemon, salt or pepper as desired. Enjoy!