Chickpea, leek & fennel soup from Polpo: A Venetian Cookbook (of Sorts) by Russell Norman

  • shallots
  • chickpeas
  • fennel
  • leeks
  • chicken stock
  • dried chillies

Where’s the full recipe - why can I only see the ingredients?

Always check the publication for a full list of ingredients. An Eat Your Books index lists the main ingredients and does not include 'store-cupboard ingredients' (salt, pepper, oil, flour, etc.) - unless called for in significant quantity.

Notes about this recipe

  • westminstr on March 08, 2017

    A second try on this soup this time with chicken broth. The chicken broth really did add some important flavor that was missing the first time around. This is really a delicious soup.

  • stockholm28 on December 11, 2016

    I liked this a lot. I made half a batch and I used homemade chicken stock and dried chickpeas. I ended up having to add 2 additional cups of liquid (one while cooking the chickpeas and a second cup while pureeing the soup. It was still quite thick. Definitely drizzle some nice olive oil on top as the recipe suggests. This was very easy and a nice hearty soup for a cold night.

  • mirage on October 02, 2015

    Light. Delicious.

  • westminstr on April 24, 2015

    I made a half recipe entirely with stuff around the house - leek tops, fennel stalks, canned chickpeas and water. Also subbed a bit of onion and garlic for the shallots and added a parmesan rind & extra olive oil for richness. I had to add extra chickpeas because there was too much water. The broth suffered a bit from the simplicity and the soup would have been better either starting with dried chickpeas or with some chicken stock added. The flavor improved with an overnight rest. Lunch served drizzled with more olive oil and freshly ground black pepper was quite good. This was still a good soup even with all my changes and would have been outstanding if made as written.

  • Breadcrumbs on April 06, 2015

    p. 231 – Soup is the perfect antidote for many a woe and when the cold weather is unrelenting, the sky is grey and the grass is the same colour as straw there is little more satisfying or consoling than tucking in to steaming bowl of delicious soup. Well, mission accomplished Polpo soup…it may be miserable outside but we feel much better inside! I used cicerechie vs chickpeas. Their flavour profile and texture are very similar although to my palate they are just a little nuttier. This is a wonderful, hearty soup reminiscent of split pea soup but without the smokiness or ham. The vegetables really get to shine here and play a supporting role to the peas. In this case they bring sweetness and balance to the soup. I added fennel fronds and and a drizzle of grassy evoo to the finished dish. They added a subtle touch of contrasting colour and freshness to the soup. We enjoyed this with some crusty bread. Photos here: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/1009438?commentId=9512532#9512532

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