Chickpea & Chard Soup

Yesterday I soaked some dried chickpeas to make some un-tuna salad (it's basically tuna salad using chickpeas that are smashed instead of tuna) and I needed something to do with the rest of the chickpeas. I also had a fresh bunch of chard from Ward's that needed attention. I found this recipe online and made it vegan and swapped out a few ingredients. It is so damn flavorful. We had leftovers for lunch today with 1/2 a sandwich. Ummmmmm .

• 3 teaspoons olive oil, divided
• 1 large sweet onion, diced
• 1 green bell pepper, diced
• 2 tablespoons garlic, minced
• 1 package Tofurky Kielbasa, sliced into half moons
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
  2 cups chickpeas
• 6 cups vegetable broth
• 1 can diced tomatoes, undrained
• 1 bunch chard, slice out the thick rib in the middle then slice into ribbons
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Heat 1-2 teaspoons olive oil in heavy soup pot and brown the sausage. Then remove from pan and set aside.

Add another teaspoon oil to the pan and saute the onion and bell pepper. Cook for 3-4 minutes, til soft but not brown.

Add the garlic and cook for about one minute longer.

Add vegetable broth, tomatoes with their juice and the chickpeas. Simmer for about 10 minutes while you cut up the chard.

Add the chard ribbons and black pepper, bring the soup to a simmer. Cook for 45 minutes to an hour until the chard is very tender.

Stir occasionally.

Serve with Triscuits or other crackers.

Enjoy!