Wild chickpeas soup
Zuppa di cicerchie
I had never heard about ‘cicerchie’ before last summer, but the wild chickpeas stretch far and taste terrific in this rustic Italian chickpeas soup.
It was my friend Eloisa who handed me a bag of ‘cicerchie’ as a going to Denmark present. Her father is a farmer, producing various kinds of lentils, peas and beans. These flat, square ones I did not recognize and Eloisa’s translation with the English word ‘pulse’ didn’t ring a bell. Yet she told me how to prepare them, and added that these dried beans are a bit like kidney beans and chickpeas only much nicer. Having tasted them I totally agree.
So if you happen to come by an Italian market, where they still sell ‘cicerchie’, don’t hesitate to buy some. They will keep for ages and form the base of many nutritious and almost free meals for the entire family.
According to Wikipedia ‘cicerchie’ have the latin name ‘Lathyrus Sativus’ and they are also known as wild chickpeas, grass pea, blue sweet pea, chuckling vetch, Indian pea, almorta, guixa, guaya or khesari
Ingredients
300 g cicerchie
6 dried tomatoes
2 cloves of garlic
2 shallot onions
1 tbsp fennel seeds
Fresh rosemary and parsley
Olive oil
Preparation
Rinse the cicerchie thoroughly and soak for 24 hours.
Drain the beans, put them in a pot and cover with fresh water
Add fennel seeds, rosemary, parsley, garlic cloves, chopped shallots and dried tomatoes in smaller pieces.
Let it boil for about an hour till the peas are soft and tender.
Add salt and pepper to taste
Drizzled with olive oil and serve with bread as a hearty soup.
Wild chickpeas soup made with cicerchie peas and dried tomatoes.
Hi Mette, I have not heard of these beans either. After this recipe and photo’s I am going to try and find them. Thanks for the share.
Regina
I will definitely look out for these. We have an ethnic market nearby. I love making dried beans and peas, and trying new ones!
well I WILL be looking for these, definitely! I love chickpeas, and have never heard of these. the flavors in this recipe sound wonderful!
Love chickpeas – and no have never seen ‘wild’ ones… must look. It’s soup time, here as well.
HEALTH NOTE: Please be aware that cicerchie, (aka wild chickpeas, titos, almorta, indian pea, chick vetchling, guaya) should not be eaten every day, just once in a while, because eating them daily can lead to a toxic effect in the body which effects blood cells.
The chickpeas are delicious, but please take note of the health warning and only eat them no more than once a week to avoid a buildup in the body.
Normally anonymous comments are erased, but I have made an exception to state the point, because you know so many synonyms for cicerchie:)