Ham And Chickpea Soup - cooking recipe

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 onion (diced)
1 carrot (diced)
2 stalks celery (diced)
2 garlic cloves (chopped)
4 -6 cups chicken stock
2 cups ham (diced)
1 ham bone (optional)
2 (19 ounce) cans chickpeas (drained and rinsed)
1 teaspoon oregano
1 bay leaf
pepper
1/2 lb green beans (cleaned, trimmed and cut)

Preparation

Heat the oil in a large sauce pan.
Add the onions, carrot and celery and saute until tender, about 10-15 minutes.
Add the garlic and saute for a few minutes.
Add the stock, ham, chickpeas, oregano and bay leaf and simmer, covered on low heat for at least 20 minutes.
Add the green beans and simmer until the green means are cooked al dente.