Middle Eastern Chickpea and Red Lentil Soup

This is one of those pantry-based dishes...plus some local red onions and garlic, and cilantro from the freezer.

Lately I have been cooking up large batches of chickpeas, black beans, etc. and freezing some for uses like this. It's easy enough to cook up, say, several cups of chickpeas and use some for a batch of hummus, some for this soup, and put some in the freezer for next time.

6-8 cloves garlic, minced
1 large red onion, chopped
1-2 Tbsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
2 cups cooked chickpeas
3/4 cup red lentils
1/2 cup bulgur wheat (substitute quinoa if you like)
1 veggie bouillon cube (optional)
1/4 cup lemon juice
2-3 frozen cilantro cubes
Salt and pepper to taste

Heat a little olive oil in a soup pot and saute the garlic and onion for 3-4 minutes. Add the cumin and coriander and saute a minute or so longer. Add the chickpeas, lentils, bulgur, and bouillon cube. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer until the lentils and bulgur are tender, about 15 minutes. Add the lemon juice, cilantro, and salt and pepper.

Serves 4-5.