Friday, June 12, 2009

Spicy Roasted Chickpea Nibbles

While perusing my copy of Ashley Miller's "The Bean Harvest Cookbook" (Newtown, CT: Taunton Press, 1998), I came upon her recipe for Chickpea Munchies, roasted cooked chickpeas spiced up with garlic and curry powder. I was looking for a little nibble for my hubby and I to sip wine with, so I switched around the spices, threw in some leftover cooked rice and used canned cooked chickpeas instead of the home-cooked dried chickpeas called for in Miller's version and they turned out splendidly. My hand was little too generous with the garam masala, so we were sucking down liquid refreshment at a rapid rate (an old bartender's trick is set out salty and spicy snacks to encourage more drink orders), so do take care. Especially if you're buying.



The result is a lovely cocktail snack, CRISPY on the outside and softly mushy on the inside. Don't worry about the skins of the chickpeas sloughing off when you stir them around; these skins take on a nice crunch when they are baked and add to the texture of the overall mix.

The Nibbles were great warm out of the oven and Dan spent a few days snacking on them cold. I stored them in an airtight container when they cooled and they survived nicely at room temperature. Here's my adapted version of Miller's great recipe:

Spicy Roasted Chick Pea Nibbles

2 (14.5 oz.) cans chickpeas, drained, rinsed and patted dry
2 Tbsp. olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. garam masala (or your favorite curry powder blend)
1 cup cooked white rice
Kosher salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Heat olive oil in frying pan. Add minced garlic and, stirring constantly, cook 1 minute. Add garam masala and stir another 1-2 minutes. Add chickpeas and cook another 2-3 minutes, stirring.

Turn out into a 9x12 glass baking dish. Bake for 15 minutes. Stir and add in cooked rice. Bake another 15-20 minutes, or until nibbles are at the desired peak of crunchiness. Season with salt and pepper.

Makes about 2-1/2 cups of nibbles.

After I made these nibbles, I researched some other ways to roast one's chickpeas and found these other recipes which I intend to try soon:

Crispy Roasted Chickpeas with Moroccan Spices from Kalyn's Kitchen

Roasted Wasabi Chickpeas
from About.com (make sure wasabi powder is wheat-free)

Spicy Roasted Chickpeas from Rosa's Yummy Yums

Amazing Toasted Mixed Nuts from The W.H.O.L.E. Gang

This ode to the Roasted Chickpea post seems the perfect submission for My Legume Love Affair, a monthly blog event that celebrates the legume in all its glorious variations and is the brainchild of Susan over at The Well-Seasoned Cook. The current round of MLLA is being hosted by Annarasa. You can join in the fun with a leguminous post by the deadline or wait to catch Annarasa's roundup after the June 30 deadline.

8 comments:

The Duo Dishes said...

Make roasted chickpeas all the time as little snacks. The rice is a nice addition.

Arlene Delloro said...

I made roasted chickpeas once, but they didn't turn out well. I may try again with the wasabi. I adore wasabi peas!

FOODalogue said...

I, too, tried it but on the stove top. I skipped the oven step but will try it next time.

Alicia Foodycat said...

Oh yum! I have had Spanish ones that are sort of hard and crispy all the way through, but I just love the idea of the soft middles of these! The garam masala that we have right now doesn't have anything "hot" in it, so I think it would give a lovely flavour.

Amy Green said...

I have never thought of roasting chickpeas...don't know why because I love them. I'll have to try this. I love the links to other sites - what a great way to help your readers learn. :) Thanks!

Esme said...

Rachel-I am giving away a copy of Obama's Blackberry if you are interested. ALso have you read Babycakes-I like the recipes and gluten free is not an issue for me-but they are not all gluten free recipe-which is strange as she sells the book and bakery as gluten vegan and almost sugar free.

Deb in Hawaii said...

I love roasted chickpeas but have not made them in forever. These look wonderful.

Rumela said...

Hi! I like the taste of chickpeas. But roasted???? I am not sure. I’ve never tried it. Actually my kids like the taste. The dish looks wonderful. I make this as little snack in the evening. Thanks for sharing the new variety with us.