Roasted Chickpeas

Me:  Do you like chickpeas?
John:  No.
Me:  Do you like garbanzo beans?
John:  Yes.
Me:  THEY ARE THE SAME THING!
John:  Oh.  I guess I like them, then.
Me:  Sigh.

I put John's chickpea/garbanzo bean-tastes to the test when I made this roasted chickpea recipe.  It has confirmed that we both do like chickpeas.  And garbanzo beans.  Go figure.

Another wonderful recipe from Super Natural Every Day, these roasted chickpeas are crunchy and tender at the same time and absolutely sing with flavor form the zest and spices.  Next time I will probably add extra heat to ours, since that's how we enjoy our food the most.

If you're anything like me, you have trouble getting beans in your diet like you wish you would.  I always have beans sitting in my pantry, but I just never grab for them and recipes seldom inspire me that feature them.  Beans are usually boring in my book.  

This wonderful recipe will have you chowing down on chickpeas like you never thought possible.  If you don't have the three kinds of paprika the recipe calls for (I had two of the three), substitute a similarly flavored spice so make sure you cover the full spectrum.  I left my chickpeas on the counter to fully dry while I was at work (to avoid the salad spinning step), and it worked great.  

If the person you cook for doesn't like chickpeas, just tell them that they are garbanzo beans: crisis averted.

Roasted Chickpeas

From Super Natural Every Day by Heidi Swanson

3 cups cooked chickpeas or 1 1/2 cans chickpeas, rinsed, drained, and spun dry in a salad spinner

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 1/2 teaspoons sweet paprika (usually just labeled "paprika")

1 1/2 teaspoons smoked paprika

1 1/2 teaspoons hot paprika

1/2 teaspoon fine-grain sea salt

Zest of one lemon

1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary (or a little less than a teaspoon if dried)

1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme (or a little less than a teaspoon if dried)

Place a rack in the top third of the oven and preheat the oven to 425 degrees.  

Place well dried chickpeas on a rimmed baking sheet and roast for 10 minutes.  Shake the pan a bit and then roast for another 8-10 minutes, making sure the chickpeas do not burn.  

Combine olive oil, spices, salt, lemon zest, rosemary, and thyme in a large mixing bowl.  Add roasted chickpeas to bowl and toss until well coated.  Return chickpeas to the baking sheet and roast for another 3-5 minutes, until very fragrant.  Serve warm.