Recipe: Chickpeas with Spinach

Recipe Source: Mallos, Tess.  Middle Eastern Home Cooking.  Periplus Editions Ltd., Boston, 2002 p. 96

If you've read this blog on anything resembling a regular basis, or if you snoop through my recycling bin at all, you already know that chickpeas are one of my favorite foods.  I had an opportunity to cook for a large group recently, and of course I wanted one of the dishes I served to involve chickpeas.  The problem?  Most of my chickpea recipes involve tomatoes in some way, and I needed to avoid tomatoes for a variety of reasons.  When I found this recipe, I decided that it fit the bill.  While the original did call for tomatoes, they weren't a hugely crucial part of the dish. 

I did make a few changes, as usual.  You already know about the tomatoes, or rather tomato paste.  I tripled the recipe because of the quantity of people I was serving.  I omitted the sugar because I'd omitted the tomato paste.  I omitted the mint because my husband is allergic to mint; I substituted a bit of cilantro instead.  I also used canned chickpeas in place of dried for ease of preparation - I had a lot of cooking to do!  Ultimately I think that the dish came out pretty well, and I'm sure I'll be making it again.

Chickpeas with Spinach (serves 20; approx. $0.42/serving)

3 25-oz cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed

3 onions, chopped

10 tablespoons minced jarred garlic

1/8 bunch parsley, chopped

1/8 bunch cilantro, chopped

3 generous teaspoons ground cumin

Kosher salt and black pepper to taste

3 lb baby spinach

Equipment:

• Large skillet with a lid.

1. Heat the oil in the skillet over medium-low heat.
2. Add the onions and cook until translucent, around 7 minutes. 
3. Add the garlic, stir well and cook for a few seconds.
4. Add the herbs, cumin, salt and pepper. 
5. Add the chickpeas.  Cover and cook for around 10 minutes. 
6. Coarsely chop the spinach. 
7. Add the spinach to the chickpea mixture and cook until the spinach is done. 
8. Serve warm or at room temperature. 

Technorati Tags: Tes Mallos,recipe,chickpeas,spinach,Armenian food,vegetarian dish,vegan recipes

Comments

[[eatingclub] vancouver]

Chickpeas are fast becoming one of my favourite foods. They might make the spinach palatable, as I find I am also developing quite an aversion to spinach lately. Weird, eh?

[Jude]

Nice quick and healthy side dish. It's amazing how filling and satisfying chickpeas are even in small amounts.