Garbanzo bean soup with celery greens and mushrooms

Yesterday, feeling crappy and not fit for mingling among the living, I decided to raid my fridge and make soup. I was picturing Caldo A La Lesley: a rich stock of onions and carrots and chicken, dotted with garbanzo beans instead of noodles.

Opening the fridge brought me back to reality. Missy — (sometimes I call myself missy in my head, because it reminds me of my mom, who used to call me that when she was annoyed) — Missy, you have just returned from a week-long trip. You don’t have an onion. Or carrots. Or — even though the freezer does have egg whites, hamburger patties and ice cream — chicken.

I couldn’t go grocery shopping, because that required leaving the house. My head and stuffy nose couldn’t handle that.

So I thought about what I did have: garbanzo beans. And, surprisingly, celery greens. I’d frozen them a few months ago, when I bought a particularly leafy stalk and couldn’t bear to throw the tops away. I’d washed and dried them, wrapped them in plastic wrap and tin foil, and forgotten about them. But their day had finally come. And I could use the dried shitake mushrooms I bought at the Korean market months ago.

Now I had a plan.

So I put my garbanzo beans on the stove, which I’d helpfully soaked overnight, assuming I’d use them for some type of soup. Added my frozen block of celery greens and let the whole thing simmer for about 45 minutes. Then I added my mushrooms, a hefty dose of salt, and let the whole thing simmer for an hour more.

I was surprised how good it turned out. Simple, and light, and kind of sweet from the celery. Not only that, but the greens were actually the star of the dish. (I assumed they’d be overly bitter for some reason.) They were mild, with a soft celery flavor. And they were hearty enough to bite into. They weren’t as toothsome as spinach or kale — two hearty, dark greens I adore — but perhaps only one or two notches below.

And the best part is, I used my entire celery stalk! And made a soup without having any fresh produce.

The recipe’s below. Now that I’ve whet your appetite for celery greens, here are a few other ways to use them:

From Saveur: Crisp Celery Green Fritters
From Serious Eats: Braise them with garlic

Garbanzo bean soup with celery greens
Makes about 3 quarts

Ingredients

About 1/2 of a 500g package of dried garbanzo beans, soaked overnight in cold water. (Tip: Water should be at least three inches over the beans.) When they’re appropriately hydrated, this equals about four to five cups
3.4 oz/93 grams frozen celery greens
Two heaping handfuls dried shitake mushrooms (about 1 cup, I suppose)
Water
Salt
Red pepper flakes

Rinse garbanzo beans thoroughly in a colander, and place them in a 3 1/2 quart Dutch oven. Fill with water to about three inches below the surface. Turn flame to medium-high, until water begins to boil. Once beans are boiling, reduce to medium heat, for a slow, rolling boil. (Note: This is what I do at high altitude, because it takes *forever* to cook beans on a low flame; if you live at a regular altitude, you can probably simmer the beans on low and it’s fine.) Add celery greens and simmer for about 45 minutes, stirring and tasting beans occasionally to see how much they’ve cooked.

When the beans start to soften, but aren’t completely done — again, the cooking time will vary — add dried mushrooms and salt. (I used about two tablespoons. I’d start with one and go from there.) Simmer about an hour more, until beans are soft but not mushy. Ladle into warm bowl, sprinkle with red pepper flakes, and serve with whatever bread you’ve got in the fridge. I cut nopal tortillas into triangles, and crisped them in the oven.