Vegan Chickpea Polenta & Fresh Spinach Soup - Inspired by edible Cleveland Magazine

When I went home for the holidays, I picked up the winter edition of edible Cleveland. My mom loves this magazine and encouraged me to take one home. I didn't have much room in my suitcase and contemplated leaving the magazine for my dad.

​After flipping through the magazine, I am so happy that I kept the magazine.  

Cleveland is a special place. It's friendly, it's hospitable and you can strike up a conversation with anyone, anywhere. I found myself chatting with a young cashier at a soup stand in Tower City for 20 minutes about his pipeline dream to move to the Pacific Northwest to work on an organic tea farm. 

The stories in edible Cleveland ignited by pride to be from Cleveland. In fact, I became sad to return to Seattle.

Seattle is a beautiful city. It's safe and nature is in your back yard, but it doesn't have the heart and the spirit like Cleveland. I feel like I don't recognize Seattle anymore since the tech world and Amazon has overtaken the city. It's just not the same place I remember back in 2011. 

The city has changed, but so have I. Maybe it's part my fault too?

edible Cleveland is an adorable magazine. The photography is beautiful and the stories are as charming as the inside illustrations. The best part is that there are recipes for vegetarians, vegans and meat-eaters alike. 

It was the best magazine I read all year! The magazine focuses on community, and you can feel that energy from cover to cover. The imagery makes you want to be a part of that community. And with some hard thinking, maybe I will return home one day. The timing is not right now, but it could happen sooner than I expected. 

I am attracted to edible Cleveland because the magazine is a mirror image of who I am. They post seasonal recipes and inspire the locals with "Our Region, Our Community and Our Food" themes. Be sure to capture the authentic "In my Austrian kitchen" recipes!

I feel a shift has entered my life. I went from "Finding Om" to Finding Home. Home is where the heart is. Heritage and history can never be taken from us, and it's something I re-discovered while living in Germany. I am thankful for a magazine like edible to share local stories. 

The original edible Cleveland recipe uses frozen spinach and fresh romano cheese. I altered the soup and made it dairy-free. If you're looking to use corn meal differently than just making traditional corn bread, be sure to try this recipe vegan style! 

Vegan Chickpea Polenta & Fresh Spinach Soup
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Serves 4-5

Ingredients:
6 cups of water
2 cups chickpeas, drained and washed (1 can)
1.5 cups fresh spinach
1/3 cup finely ground corn meal
1/4 cup olive oil
4 garlic cloves, chopped 
1/2 - 3/4 tsp nutritional yeast
1 1/8 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

Directions:
Cook the chopped garlic in olive oil for 2-3 minutes. Add the water and bring it to a boil. Gradually, add the corn meal into the soup pot, continue whisking for 4-5 minutes. Add the remaining ingredients and cook until the spinach is edible. Adjust any spices as needed. 

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