Tender, golden chickpea noodles float serenely in a bath of tomatoey broth. In the bowl: greens and roma tomatoes and onions and red pepper. Steam rises in soft curls. A spoon glints blue as the light dies.

I find soup far more enchanting than most other foods. It warms the marrow, gets the blood moving. Brings light to dark, wintery evenings. And it pairs well with a good book and toppling piles of cozy blankets.

Fall has descended over Virginia as a mist. It's wet and cool and blue-grey. Charlottesville is much like a temperate rainforest. All around me there are the sounds of tiny birds twittering and whistling. Squirrels croak defiantly as they clutch black walnuts in their teeth, scurrying up telephone poles and beneath chain link fences. Wild grape has settled over everything. My yard looks like it's wearing a heavily-matted green sweater faceted with tiny electric-blue baubles.

The chill in the air makes it perfect weather for eating this nourishing hot soup out on the stoop, watching the sky change from muted pink to velvety dark blue. Slurping broth as the silvery stars pop out against the darkness. As the moon flashes a toothy sideways grin.

This Chickpea Noodle Soup was the result of, um, having almost nothing in the fridge. I'd used up every noodle but the bean variety. I had a can of tomatoes, some sad-looking collards and one red pepper.

This is one of my favorite situations to be in.

What's that saying? Necessity is the mother of invention?

Some of my best recipes (usually easy, weeknight standards) have come out of the whole there's nothing in the fridge situation. And that's exactly why it's important to have a well-stocked dry pantry and spice cabinet! I'd be a sad cat without my arsenal of weird spices.

This Chickpea Noodle Soup is filling, savory, tomatoey and lightly peppery. It's nice and complex, with a base of alliums (onion, garlic) and tomato. The 5-spice blend is fennel seed, allspice, turmeric, cumin and black pepper. It's a tomato-centric soup with lots of veggies and a swirl of creaminess from yogurt at the end. It's pretty damn good, if I do say so myself.

It features filling chickpea noodles, which are a pretty good substitute for regular noodles! I was surprised at how much I liked them! They satisfy my pasta cravings (I was not expecting this). And they're high in protein, fiber and complex carbohydrates. Which makes this soup incredibly filling. And this recipe only takes 25 minutes!

I really hope you enjoy this recipe, and that it warms you up on the chilly nights ahead.

One-Pot 5-Spice Chickpea Noodle Stew

Created by Renee on September 28, 2016

Notes: chickpea noodles have a thickening quality in this stew whereas other bean pastas offer a thinner broth. This stew is excellent with green lentil pasta as well!

• Cook Time: 25m

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil, coconut oil or ghee
• 1/2 red onion, chopped roughly
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon fennel seeds (optional)
• 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
• 1 teaspoon whole cumin
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 17 ounces jar/can fire-roasted, diced tomatoes
• 5 cups water
• 1 cup white wine
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
• 1 red pepper, chopped roughly (~ 1 cup)
• 6 large collard leaves, stems removed and chopped roughly (~3 cups packed)
• 1 medium zucchini, sliced thinly (Chinese eggplant also works well)
• 9 ounces package chickpea rotini OR green lentil penne
• 1 teaspoon Celtic sea salt + more to taste
• 6 tablespoons full-fat yogurt (plant based or otherwise)

Instructions

1. Set a large soup pot on medium high heat. Add oil and red onion and sautee the red onion until translucent, about 5 minutes. Then add the garlic and spices (fennel, allspice, turmeric, cumin, pepper) and sautee 2 mins further, stirring frequently.
2. Add the rest of the ingredients: fire roasted tomatoes, water, wine, balsamic vinegar, apple cider vinegar, red pepper, collards, zucchini, salt and pasta. Stir everything together so that the pasta is mostly covered with liquid.
3. Cover and cook for 15-20 minutes, until the pasta is soft and the vegetables have cooked down. Stir the yogurt into the pot just before serving.
4. Serve hot and enjoy!