Curried Chickpeas

Last week was the Jewish holiday of Shavuot. It is traditional to eat dairy foods; however, my body doesn’t care much for dairy. As I had a craving for a curry, I took a recipe for curried chickpeas from The Vegetarian Epicure Book Two by Anna Thomas and substituted coconut oil for the butter. I didn’t use all the spices listed in the original recipe, and I added the red onions. You can mix and match ingredients as desired.

Ingredients

• 1 Tbsp. organic coconut oil
• 1 tsp. turmeric
• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1 tsp. coriander
• 1 tsp. cumin
• 1 tsp. black pepper or to taste
• 1 tsp. sea salt or to taste
• 2 tsp. chopped ginger root
• Optional 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
• Optional: 1/2 tsp. ground cloves (I didn’t add this, but it sounds like a nice flavor)
• Optional: 2-3 chopped garlic cloves
• 1 can of chick peas (or soak dried chick peas overnight and cook before using in the recipe)
• Garnish: Parsley or cilantro
• Optional: chopped red onion
• Optional: lemon juice
• Optional: chopped tomatoes – maybe I’ll add chopped tomatoes when they are season (August) – that’s the only time I eat them

In a saucepan or a wok, warm the coconut oil and the spices. After a few minutes, add the garlic, ginger and chickpeas and coat well. Cook for about 10 minutes. The original recipe suggested crushing a few of the chickpeas. Top with parsley or coriander and optional lemon juice, chopped onions and/or chopped tomatoes. You can serve immediately or reheat the next day. Delicious on rice.

I also made the same recipe with cubed zucchini – I may post that recipe next week.