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1
Place the squash, bell pepper, carrots, and onion in the crock of a slow cooker.
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2
Add the vegetable broth, cumin, and maple syrup.
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3
Cook on high until the vegetables are soft and beginning to dissolve into the liquid, about 4 hours.
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4
Meanwhile, line a baking sheet with a double layer of paper towels.
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5
Rinse the canned chickpeas and let them drain in a strainer for up to an hour, to remove as much water as possible.
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6
Lay them out on the lined baking sheet and dry out for about 3 hours, while the soup is cooking.
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7
An hour before the soup is done, heat your oven to 400 degrees F. Coat a baking sheet with the vegetable oil and spread out the chickpeas.
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8
Shake the baking sheet until the chickpeas are evenly coated in oil.
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9
Sprinkle with the cumin, cayenne, paprika, and measured salt and shake again to coat.
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10
Roast until nice and crispy, about 40 to 50 minutes, carefully shaking the baking sheet every 10 minutes to redistribute so the chickpeas around the edges dont brown too soon.
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11
Set aside when done.
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12
Puree the soup, using an immersion blender or carefully transferring it in batches to a regular blender.
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13
Stop when you get the consistency you like (we prefer it a little chunky).
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14
Season with black pepper and salt to taste (there may be enough salt from the vegetable broth alone, so season with caution).
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15
Ladle into warmed bowls and garnish with the roasted chickpeas.