What?! Soup in August? We say, “yes” to that as this soup is equally good cold or hot. A pot of this can be enjoyed now in the steamy weather and later in the cold of winter.

Armenian Spinach Soup

Ingredients:

12 oz. fresh spinach, chopped (The exact amount doesn’t really matter, but you do want quite a bit. I aim for about four or five cups)
1 can chickpeas
1 onion, chopped
2 to 5 cloves of garlic, minced
2 tablespoons to 1/4 cup olive oil for sautéing, or use water
1/2 cup tahini
juice of about two small lemons
1 cup vegetable broth
four or five cups of water

Directions:

Saute the onion in olive oil or water until soft. Add the chopped spinach and half of the minced garlic, and sauté until the spinach is wilted. Add the vegetable broth, water, and chickpeas, and stir well. Simmer for about a half hour.

While the above is cooking, add the remaining garlic and the tahini to the lemon juice, and blend well. Add a small amount of the hot soup to the lemon/tahini mixture. This will prevent curdling of the tahini.

Add the lemon/tahini mixture to the hot soup, and mix well. Remove from the heat, and season with salt and pepper.