Donal's tomato & chickpea orecchiette soup

Ingredients

Serves: 4

Time: 45 mins

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 carrot
• 2 sticks celery
• 1 onion
• 1 tbsp tomato puree
• 1 tsp soft brown sugar
• 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 2 x 400g tins chopped tomatoes
• 1 veg stock cube
• 600 - 700ml hot water
• 1 x 400g tin chickpeas
• 150g orecchiette
• 2 large handfuls of baby spinach
• 100g parmesan cheese

For the garlic sourdough toasts

• 4 slices sourdough
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled

To serve

• Basil, to serve
• Extra virgin olive oil, to serve
• Sea salt & freshly ground black pepper

Method

1. To start, finely chop the carrot, onion and celery.
2. Heat the oil in a large casserole pot over a medium heat. Add the onion, carrot, celery and a pinch of salt and fry for 15 mins (6-8 mins if you're short on time), or until softened.
3. Whilst the veg softens, drain chickpeas, open tins of tomatoes and roughly cut them with scissors.
4. Now, add the tomato puree, soft brown sugar and Worcestershire sauce. Stir and add the veg stock cube and 400 - 600ml boiling water from the kettle. Stir in the pasta and bring to the boil, cooking for about 10 minutes.
5. Whilst the soup simmers, slice the sourdough and drizzle with a little olive oil. Get a griddle pan onto a high heat. Add the bread to the hot griddle pan and cook until toasted. Remove from the pan and rub with the garlic cloves and season with a little salt and another drizzle of olive oil.
6. Back to the soup. Season and add in the chickpeas and spinach, cover and simmer again
7. Finally, blitz parmesan in mini blender.
8. To serve, ladle the hot soup into bowls, season, drizzle over extra virgin olive oil and sprinkle with the blitzed parmesan. Finish with some basil leaves and black pepper.