1small yellow beet, peeled, quartered, cut into ¼-inch thick pieces
a few sprigs fresh sage or thyme
1or 2 parmesan rinds (about 2 inches square)
6cups(1.5 L) water
2vegetable bouillon cubes
2(13-ounce / 385 ml) jars or cans cooked chickpeas, drained (~2 ½ cups)
18ounces(525 ml) jarred whole peeled tomatoes, drained, seeded, and cut into large chunks
fine sea salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
8-10ounces(280 g) dry shells, macaroni, or other small pasta, cooked until al dente and tossed with olive oil
shaved parmesan, for serving
Lemon Parsley Oil, for serving (below)
Instructions
In a large soup pot, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the onion and garlic, and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened slightly, 3-5 minutes. Add the carrots and celery and cook another 3 minutes, then add the squash, potatoes, beets, herbs, parmesan rind, water, bouillon, and chickpeas. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer and cook, partially covered, until the vegetables are tender but still holding a shape, 10-20 minutes, adding more water if needed to make a brothy soup. Stir in the tomatoes and a few good grinds of pepper, then taste, adding salt if you feel the soup needs it.
Divide the pasta among shallow bowls, ladle in some soup, and serve with parsley oil, shaved parmesan, and more black pepper, with crusty bread on the side. The soup and pasta can be stored separately, refrigerated airtight, for up to 4 days.
Notes
This version uses a couple of shortcuts (canned or jarred chickpeas, veggie bouillon cubes) while still yielding a fairly quick and super tasty soup.For both versions, feel free to play around with the ingredients. White beans of any stripe make a good chickpea stand-in; parsnips, rutabagas, sweet potatoes, and turnips can all be swapped in for the other veggies; throw in a bunch of stemmed kale leaves at the end if you’d like some extra greenery; or try different pasta shapes or different soft herbs in the parsley oil.Either way the soups keep brilliantly for the better part of a week – the flavors just get better and better.See below for the extra-flavorful version of this soup that starts with dried chickpeas.Nutritional values are based on one of eight servings.