Beetroot Soup with Roasted Chickpeas

As a child beetroot was awful to me. Earthy and red, that had to keep off my plate. Since I'm a vegan my taste definitely changed. I'm using beetroot all the time and I love it. If grated in a salad, in a cream sauce, roasted with finger-shaped potato dumpling, in a risotto or in a dessert. The colour just makes me smile.

In the winter I love earthy vegetables like pumpkin and potatos. The beetroot just fits perfectly into a colorful menu. Before you know it the nodule has turned into a soup. I ate it all even though I wanted to keep something for my boyfriend...oh well, next time :-)

Makes 4 portions.

Ingredients:
2 beetroot (700 g)
1 onion
3 tbsp. olive oil
1 small piece ginger
2 tsp. vegetable broth, powder
100 ml orange juice
5 cloves
1/2 tsp. cilantro seeds, grounded
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1 can (400 g) coconut milk
0,8-1 l water
1 tbsp. almond butter
salt, pepper
4 tbsp. non-dairy cream
1 tsp. thyme, dried
orange zest

Peel the beetroot and the onion and cut them into cubes. Stew in olive oil until the onion start roasting. Cut ginger into small pieces and add it to the vegetable broth. Deglaze it with orange juice. Add cloves, cilantro, cinnamon, coconut milk and half of the water. Let it cook with closed lid for 10 minutes than add almond butter. Mash everything and taste it.

For the roasted chickpeas:
1 can chickpeas
1 tbsp. olive oil
1/2 garlic paste
3/4 tsp. sweet paprika powder
3/4 tsp. curcuma powder
seasalt, pepper

Pour off the chickpeas and mix them with olive oil, garlic, paprika powder and curcuma powder. Flavour it with salt and pepper. Bake at 200°C (392°F) upper-/lower heat for 20 minutes. Turn them around once a while so they don't get burned.

Serve the soup with dab of cream, some thyme, orange zest and put the chickpeas on top.

Enjoy the recipe!