Tag Archives: chickpeas

Repeater Recipes – Curried Quinoa with Chickpeas and Apples

5 Dec

This is a recipe in my Repeater Recipe series, a series of posts where I feature previously posted recipes that show up often in our meal rotation.  It’s also a good chance to introduce some ‘classic’ recipes to my new readers.

Original Air Date: December 28, 2010

This is a recipe that has a strange ingredient list (well, strange to the non-food bloggers out there): quinoa, apples, curry, cilantro, etc.  Oh, and lime.  Of course.  And don’t forget the chickpeas.  Totally normal, right? Somehow the flavors just work, as does the contrasting textures. The crisp, sweet apples juxtaposed against the salty, curried quinoa?  Mmmmm.

The salad keeps will in the fridge for 2-3 days and tastes good cold and at room temperature.

Curried Quinoa Salad with Chickpeas and Apples

Curried Quinoa

  • 1 cup quinoa, rinsed and drained.  (I’ve used regular and sprouted)
  • 2 cups water
  • 1 Tbsp curry powder
  • 1 tsp cumin
Bring all ingredients to a boil.  Cover, reduce heat and simmer until all liquid is absorbed, about 15 minutes.  Remove from heat and cool.
Salad Ingredients
  • 2 cups cooked Curried Quinoa (see above)
  • 1 medium apple, diced.  I like granny smith best in this recipe.
  • 1 can chickpeas, rinsed and drained -or- 2 cups cooked chickpeas
  • 3/4 cup shredded carrots
  • 1/4 cup diced cilantro
  • 1/4 cup diced green onion
Lime Vinaigrette Dressing
  • 3 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
  • juice of 1 lime
  • 1 tsp lime zest
  • salt and pepper to taste
Mix all ingredients together and let sit in the fridge for a couple of hours for the flavors to meld.  Tastes great cold and at room temperature.

What I Ate Wednesday – Starring Apples and Oats

25 Oct

It is yet another Wednesday, and time for What I Ate Wednesday hosted by Jenn at Peas and Crayons.  In my mind this was going to be a apple themed post, but the day’s eats turned out to have are more dominant oats theme.

I started my day with some juice.

Before:

Celery, broccoli stalks, parsley, carrots, cucumber, apple, lemon and ginger.

After:

I drank some green jasmine tea (not pictured) while cooking my oatmeal for breakfast.  I stirred in some granny smith apples while cooking and then topped with more apples and cinnamon for a apple cinnamon oatmeal breakfast.

I ran some errands and came home to scarf down a quick lunch of pumpkin oatmeal bar with rawaldorf salad (hi apples).

I also baked some pumpkin gingersnaps (from Peas and Thank You) and made some teacher treat plates with those and these Roasted Banana Bars with Browned Butter Icing from Cooking Light.  Maybe it was bribery, after last week’s bad day report from my little guy and for today’s parent-teacher conference for my girl.  Maybe.  :)

The kids and I headed to Target to pick up sparkly makeup for Halloween.  First time I’ve bought make up for a six year old.  I almost felt like one of those Toddler & Tiara moms, but rest assured there will be no spray tanning or demanding that she ‘shake it.’

I shared some Target popcorn with this guy (who had a much better day at school than last Thursday and not a single bathroom accident+public urination incident, thank you very much).  And by shared, I mean I ate almost all of it while he looked at the toys and then told his sister to share the rest of hers with him.  Mean mom, mean mom.

20111025-224941.jpgDinner was Husband Approved Chickpea Burgers served with the Alexia sea salt french fries.  The burgers contain oats, marking the third time that oats appeared on my menu today.

Kid’s Plate:

carrots, cheese, grapes, pear, ketchup, chickpea patty, fries

My Plate:

field greens, olive oil + balsamic vinegar, hemp seeds and chickpea patty

For desert I had a dish of the maiden ice cream from my ice cream maker that I bought this spring and, unforgivably, let sit in the garage for an entire Texas summer.  I made this Vegan Pumpkin Ice Cream from I Eat Trees and it’s definitely a keeper recipe.  I’m thinking I’ll turn it into a Pumpkin  ice cream pie for Thanksgiving…

The ice cream is apple and oat free, thus ending my day-o-apple and oats.

Cilantro Jalapeno Hummus (aka Husband Friendly Hummus)

26 Jun

This is the first hummus that I’ve been able to get my husband to eat.  While I think that chickpeas are one of nature’s perfect foods, he isn’t so star-struck by the humble garbanzo bean.  He does like these Chickpea Veggie Burgers, but, up to now, that is the only chickpea dish I’ve been able to make that he happily eats.

I modified this recipe from Peas and Thank You and found it to be my first husband-pleasing hummus.  As a double endorsement, my father in law, who is most certainly not a chickpea eater, ate about half the bowl of this dip before asking what it was.  Upon learning it was hummus, he raised his eyebrows, shrugged and went back to eating.  My mother-in-law and I secretly high-fived behind his back.  The two of us are all about tricking our men into eating chickpeas.

Pardon the less than stellar photo.  Don’t let it deter you from making this dish…..

Cilantro Jalapeno Hummus

  • 1.5 cups cooked chickpeas (or one 14 oz. can of chickpeas, drained, rinsed)
  • 1/4 -1/2 c. water (or liquid reserved from can, if using canned)
  • 1 medium jalapeño, seeded, cored and chopped
  • 2 T. fresh lime juice
  • 2 Tbsp tahini
  • 1 t garlic powder
  • salt to taste
  • 1/2 -3/4 c. cilantro (I went with a heaping 3/4 c, but I am a bit obsessed with cilantro)
Place all ingredients in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth.  Add more water if needed to reach desired consistency.
Cilantro – are you a fan?  I used to despise it, but now I eat it almost daily.  I juice it, put it on my salads, in my hummus, on tacos and sandwiches.  

Quinoa and Chickpea Bake with Mmmm Sauce

7 Jun

I’ve made no secret of my obsession with admiration of Mama Pea at Peas and Thank You.  Picking my favorite recipe from that site would be like picking a favorite child.  Her pumpkin scones, cilantro jalapeno hummus and roasted chickpea tacos are on a steady rotation in my house.  My latest favorite is her Mmmm Sauce.  It is complex, tart, creamy and addictive.  My kids and husband do not like the sauce, which is fine by me, as I can eat the whole recipe in 2-3 days.  It’s my salad dressing some days, a dip for carrots and triscuits other days.

Last week I put it atop a wholesome but rather bland quinoa chickpea bake and it absolutely took the recipe from ho-hum to ‘eat 2 bowls in one sitting’ good.

Quinoa and Chickpea Bake with Mmmm Sauce

Ingredients:

1 batch Mmmm sauce (recipe here)

1.25 c uncooked, rinsed quinoa
3 cups water/vegetable broth/combo of both
1.5 c cooked chickpeas
1 chopped bell pepper (I used a mix of orange and yellow)
1/2 c finely chopped kale
1/2 c chopped zucchini
1/2 c finely chopped carrot
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp EVOO
2 Tbsp chopped fresh basil
1 Tbsp chopped fresh rosemary
1 tsp fennel seeds
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper

Directions

  1. Make Mmmm sauce
  2. Preheat oven to 400F.
  3. Combine all ingredients in a lightly greased casserole dish and stir well.
  4. Bake, covered, for about 50 minutes, or until quinoa is cooked and liquid is absorbed.  Stir a couple of times during baking.
  5. Remove from oven, cool for a bit and top with Mmmmm sauce.
Who is your blog crush?

Have Chickpeas, Will Travel

25 Apr

We spent the last four days with out-of-town family for Easter.  Thursday night the four of us drove to the Dallas area (5.5 hours), where my folks live.  On Friday the husband and kids got back in the car and headed about 3.5  hours away to visit his grandfather.  I stayed behind due to a Saturday morning commitment in Dallas.  My 3 loves drove back on Saturday (another 3.5 hours) early evening, just in time for a church egg hunt and Easter Eve service.  Sunday we had Easter with my parents, sister, brother & sister-in-law in Dallas and then got back in the car and drove the final 5.5 hour leg of our trip to come back to San Antonio.

I’ve got posts coming this week about the trip and Easter (ps, my kids looked pretty cute in their Easter finest, until my little guy drooled tootsie roll all over his white shirt).

I packed up foods on Thursday both for the drive and for me to eat while at my parent’s house.  Can you see the common theme/ingredient?

Clockwise from upper left: Vega powder, Justin’s chocolate peanut butter, apples, clementines, bananas, lemon, chicken-less chicken salad (with chickpeas + vegan mayo + celery + onion), peanut butter hummus, brownie batter hummus, curried quinoa with chickpeas and apples, almonds, tortillas

Hmmm.  Think I like chickpeas a little?  Yep.

And Katie (of Nourishing Flourishing), if you are reading, you have been deemed a culinary genius by my family.  Your peanut butter hummus (here is the link again) was eaten by my mom, dad, sister, sister in law AND mother in law.  I don’t know if my mom has ever had a chickpea cross her lips until this recipe.  That, my friends, is an Easter miracle.  It tastes like a whipped peanut butter-flavored butter.  It is sooo good!   I liked the brownie batter hummus too, but I didn’t think it was in the same league as the peanut butter hummus.

Hope you all had a great Easter weekend!

Smoky Chickpea Spread

18 Apr

Ingredients:

  • 1 15oz can chickpeas, rinsed and drained (or about 1.5 c cooked chickpeas)
  • 3/4 tsp smoked paprika
  • 1/2 tsp cumin
  • 1/2 tsp dried chipotle
  • 1/2 tsp dried garlic (or 1 clove minced fresh garlic)
  • 4 tsp lemon juice
  • 1 Tbsp EVOO
Directions:
Combine all ingredients in a food processor until mostly smooth (it will be thicker and chunkier than humus).  Add salt and pepper to taste

I made this spread last week and had it for lunch for 3 days in a row.  It was really good!  I ate in on a sandwich with Ezekiel 4:9 bread, spinach and shredded carrots.  If you eat dairy, it is really good with feta cheese.

Happy Monday!

The One Where I Finally Make Socca

21 Mar

If you read the healthy food blogs, you’ve read about socca.  Socca is a bread made from chickpea/garbanzo flour. Click here for a tribute to socca page over on Pure2Raw.

For my first foray into socca making, I chose this recipe for a Socca Breakfast Pizza from Heather Eats Almond Butter.  I halved it, left out the basil, sausage and tahini and added some goat cheese.  It was fantastic.  Cooking it in a pre-heated cast iron skillet gave it such a yummy brown crust.

Lunch is served.

Who am I kidding?  I ate an additional piece of socca pizza after I finished off the first plate of food.

The kids both tried a bite and weren’t big fans.  They ended up having scrambled eggs + cheese in tortillas.

And made Hanibal Lector like masks out of tortillas.  Every child does this with their lunch, right?  At least she didn’t ask for some fava beans.

 

Are you a socca fan?  What socca recipe should I try next?

Chickpea Burgers

11 Mar

Thanks for all the feedback on my new name and site.  The nice comments really made my day yesterday.  You guys rock.

I found a bean burger recipe that my husband likes.  Big news.  He eats most everything I make, but, at times, I know he just does it because he loves me.  He is a wonderful sport and is game for any meal as long as it doesn’t involve ‘hot fruit or curry’ (his words).  Still, I know there are meals that I like a lot more than he does.  This one, however, he ate willingly.

I started with this recipe from Eat, Drink and Be Vegan:

Here is my version.

(Husband Approved) Chickpea Burgers

  • 2 tsp grapeseed oil
  • 1 c onion, chopped
  • 3/4 c celery, chopped
  • 1/4 c carrots, chopped
  • 2 c cooked chickpeas
  • 1 garlic clove, sliced
  • 2 Tbsp vegan Worcestershire sauce
  • 2 Tbsp tamari or soy sauce
  • 2 c cooked brown rice
  • 3/4 c quick oats
  • 3-3 Tbsp grapeseed oil for frying
  1. Saute oil, onions, celery, carrots and garlic over medium heat for about 8 minutes, or until tender and fragrant.  Set aside
  2. Combine chickpeas, Worcestershire, tamari and salt and pepper to taste in a food processor.  Process until pureed.
  3. Add sauteed vegetables and 1 cup cooked rice to food processor and puree to mix well.
  4. Add remaining rice and pulse to incorporate, retaining some texture.
  5. Transfer mixture to a large bowl and stir in oats.  Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
  6. Remove from fridge and shape into patties.
  7. Fry in oil over medium heat until golden on each side.

These turned out really good.  They are quite savory with the Worcestershire and tamari.  The kids didn’t like them, probably because of the strong onion and Worcestershire flavor.  Conversely, because of the onion and Worcestershire, my husband really liked them.  He took them for lunch the next day mashed into a wrap with lettuce.  I cooked up the leftovers a few days later and, for the first time ever, he asked ‘do we have more of those chickpea burgers?’

I had to blog about it – my husband asking for chickpeas deserves to be written down for posterity.

Verdict – 2 adult thumbs up, 2 kid thumbs down.

 

Curried Quinoa Salad with Chickpeas

28 Dec

The moms from my Bible study class had a holiday lunch gathering.  I knew there would be a Chick-Fil-A nugget tray, but after recently reading ” target=”_blank”>Eating Animals (and other books), I have moved from eating mostly vegetarian to being a vegetarian.  No nuggets for me.  At the same time, I also didn’t want to make a big deal about it with my friends and make anyone uncomfortable, so I made this salad for my meal.

In the spirit of keeping it real, my kids did eat the nuggets.  I’m trying to navigate the waters when it comes to how I feed them in social situations when all of their peers are eating food that I don’t feel good about.  My kids don’t currently share my convictions.  They are 5 & 2 – clearly they don’t get the implications of factory farming and other moral dilemmas associated with eating meat.  I don’t serve them meat at home and very rarely order it for them when we are out as a family.  However, once or twice a month we are in a situation like this where I have trouble asking them to forgo what all of their friends are eating.  I load up their plates with fruit and veggies and crackers and all the non-meat sides, but I do let them have the meat.

Okay, on to the recipe:

Curried Quinoa Salad with Chickpeas

  • 1 cup quinoa – I used sprouted, but regular would work fine
  • 2 cups water
  • 1 Tbsp curry powder
  • 1 tsp cumin

Bring all ingredients to a boil and cover, reduce heat and simmer 15-20 minutes.  Remove from heat and cool.

When cool, toss with:

  • 1 green apple, diced
  • 1 can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
  • 1/4 c diced cilantro
  • 2 carrots, shredded
  • 1/4 c diced green onions

Mix up and stir in dressing:

  • 3 Tbsp EVOO
  • 1 Tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar
  • Juice of 1 lime
  • 1 tsp lime zest
  • salt and pepper to taste

A couple of days later the kids and I went on an outing and I enjoyed the salad again as a picnic lunch, while they ate pb&j.

Any other mamas out there facing this same dilemma with allowing/not allowing your kids to eat something based on your personal convictions?

Do you agree that it is quite hard to explain to a child that young why they aren’t allowed to eat something with all their friends, or am I taking the easy way out?

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