The garlic-rosemary ones are in the front, the sweet ones are in the back. They are both great.

Putting chickpeas in the oven is not new here at The Food Spot. I’ve made a toasted chickpea salad before, which–if I may be modest for a second–was terrific. (Wait a sec… that’s the opposite of modesty, oh well.) In that version the chickpeas were only lightly toasted–the centers of the chickpeas were still chewy–so it turned out more like little self contained balls of slightly crunchy, roasted-flavored hummus. This time I just kept cooking them. I cooked them for nearly twice as long–almost an hour. What this yielded was a super crunchy snack–almost closer to a nut than to a bean. I took that as a not so subtle hint and mixed in a few pistachios and cashews.

Oh yeah, I almost forgot the whole “two ways” thing that this post is supposed to be about. Well, when you look at nuts, you normally see them as either sweet (e.g., honey roasted) or salty. So I basically adapted that concept for these: one batch was made with brown sugar and chili powder and the other with garlic and rosemary. I don’t know what possessed me to add chili powder to the brown sugar one, I just figured that sweet and spicy would also be tasty. Fortunately, I was right.

See the brown sugar caramelized on some of the nuts? That's a little but of awesome.

You can mix your own versions of spices, but if you are short on ideas, feel free to use mine. Either way you won’t be disappointed. It’s a ridiculously simple snack to make. I served them with an aperitif before dinner and munched on the few leftover the next day.
Here’s how to do it:

Spicy Brown Sugar Chickpeas
Ingredients
1 can of chickpeas (aka garbanzo beans), drained, rinsed, dried
1/4 cup unroasted, unsalted cashews
1/4 cup unroasted, unsalted pistachios
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 packed tablespoon brown sugar
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp chili powder

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 400F. Drain and rinse the chickpeas in a colandar. Allow to dry.
2. Toss chickpeas with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Spread out on a rimmed baking sheet.
3. Bake for 40-50 minutes, until they look browned and rattle when you give the pan a shake. Move them around on the sheet every 15 to 20 minutes to prevent any burnt areas.
4. Toss the remaining ingredients with the warm chickpeas and bake for 10 more minutes.

I don't know if another photo will convince you to make these or not, but hey, they look good, so why not?

Savory Chickpeas
Ingredients
1 can of chickpeas (aka garbanzo beans), drained, rinsed, dried
1/4 cup unroasted, unsalted cashews
1/4 cup unroasted, unsalted pistachios
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp rosemary

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 400F. Drain and rinse the chickpeas in a colandar. Allow to dry.
2. Toss chickpeas with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Spread out on a rimmed baking sheet.
3. Bake for 40-50 minutes, until they look browned and rattle when you give the pan a shake. Move them around on the sheet every 15 to 20 minutes to prevent any burnt areas.
4. Toss the remaining ingredients with the warm chickpeas and bake for 10 more minutes.

Bonus
These are built in make-ahead foods. Not only can you prepare each recipe until step 3 then finish later to serve still warm, but you can also simply make everything and store them in an air-tight container and serve at room temp. They are good either way.

I made two variants of this dish over the past couple weeks, both were great, and both were impromptu. The first time I made this I had very little to work with, but when you gotta eat, you gotta eat. So I threw together what I had. A can of chickpeas, some pine nuts, some Parmesan cheese, and a few spices was all I used. Toast the chickpeas, toss with the ingredients and some lemon juice, salt, pepper, a dash of paprika, and olive oil. That’s it. Easy as pie. Actually, much easier than pie; Perhaps as easy as eating pie.

Simple Roast Chickpea Salad

About a week or so later I was in a similar situation except I had a shallot and couple tomatoes on hand. I diced those up, and did almost the same thing as before. This time I made a vinaigrette with the shallot and omitted the paprika.

Both versions are simple, quick, and easy to make, but I prefer the second version. The tomatoes add a bit of moisture and the shallot and vinaigrette add a bit more bite. It’s also quite healthy and, if you omit the Parm, vegetarian and vegan friendly! You can always make doughnuts if you want to clog your arteries.

A bit more complex than above, but it shouldn't take more time.

Toasted Chickpea Salad
Roasting the chickpeas is indeed optional, but it contributes a great nutty flavor. If you are short on time or don’t want to use your oven, you can skip that step.
Ingredients
1 15oz can chickpeas, drained, rinsed
1 tsp lemon juice
2 tsps olive oil
salt and pepper
1/4 cup Parmesan
2 tbsps pine nuts
Variant 1
1 tsp paprika
Variant 2
1 small shallot, minced
2 Roma tomatoes, diced
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp red wine vinegar, (I like to use 2 tsps, but I like a vinegary mix)
3/4 tsp Dijon mustard

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 400F. If using variant 2, whisk the minced shallot, olive oil, vinegar, salt, pepper, and mustard in a bowl.
2. Toss the chickpeas with about 2 tsp olive oil then place them on a baking sheet and roast for 30-40 minutes. Shake the pan every 10-15 minutes to prevent scorching. They will be done when browned and toasted.
3. Regardless of the variant, or your own changes, just toss everything else in a bowl with the chickpeas.

This version is light, zesty, and flavorful–but just heavy and soupy enough to still make it a good contender for cold weather comfort food. (Though it could easily be a feature in a Spring picnic.) The key to making this chili is lots of peppers, at least three different kinds, in fact. A few cans of beans, and some shredded turkey breast later and you have what you can satisfactory call a turkey chili.

Turkey chili.

I particularly like this recipe because it provides a healthy and lighter alternative to to the heavy and often fatty stews often served during the cold weather. Those have their place, but sometimes it’s nice to know you managed to have a great meal and eat something healthful too.

This recipe is largely inspired by the Cooks Illustrated version of a white turkey chili. They keep things light colored instead of the ruddy browns in beef chilis. Their addition of lime juice brightens the dish and gives the impression of a much lighter meal that goes down really well scooped up on tortilla chips.

Ingredients
Small turkey breasts are sometimes difficult to find. Many are upwards of 6 to 8 pounds. Get the smallest you can find at your store. The recipe can be scaled if necessary.
1 small turkey breast (~3-4lbs), patted dry
1 tbsp veg oil
4 jalapeño chiles
4 poblano chiles, seeds removed, cut into chunks
3 anaheim chiles, seeds removed, cut into chunks
1 large onion, cut into chunks
6 garlic cloves, minced
1 tbsp cumin
2 tsp coriander
2 cans (~15 oz ea.) cannellini beans, drained and rinsed (I like Progresso)
3 cups low-sodium chicken broth (homemade is best)
2 limes, juiced
1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro leaves (optional)
4 scallions, sliced into thin rounds (from the white to the light green)

Directions
Step one can be omitted for time, but it creates a richer turkey flavor if you do it.
1. Over med-high, heat 1 tbsp veg oil in large, heavy bottomed pot. Once the oil is hot, add the turkey skin-side down and sear for 6-8 minutes. Rotate the turkey, and sear on another side for 6-8 minutes. Repeat until the turkey is well browned. Remove the pot from the heat, remove the turkey to a plate and discard the skin.
2. Working in batches in a food processor, process three of the jalapeños, the poblanos, anaheims, and the onion in 10-20 pulses (stop when it reaches the consistency of salsa).
3. Add the vegetables from step 2 to the now empty pot (leave the oil that was still in it from searing the turkey) along with the garlic, cumin, and coriander. Cook over medium to medium-low heat for 10-15 minutes.
4. After the vegetables soften, process about 1 cup of the vegetables with 1 cup of beans and 1 cup of broth (again, work in batches if you have a small processor) until well blended. Return the now smooth mixture to the pot with the remaining broth. Add the turkey breast (bone-side down) and cover the pot. Increase the heat to medium-high and cook for 20-30 minutes (internal temp of turkey should be around 160 when cooked).
5. Reduce heat to medium-low and transfer the turkey to a plate. Add the remaining beans to the pot and cook until heated through, 5-10 minutes.
6. Mince remaining jalapeños–to make the chili hotter, keep the seeds.
7. Shred or chop the turkey (I did a bit of both) and add the turkey, jalapeños, lime juice, cilantro, and scallions to the pot. Stir to combine and taste for salt and pepper adjustments. Serve with tortilla chips.

Every year as the weather started getting colder, my mother would start boiling away vegetables in a large pot to make this soup. As I started to develop an interest in cooking, I tried to pay attention to what she was putting into the pot but I could never figure it out. Just when I thought I understood, I realized that the recipe was different than the previous ones! She seemed to say something about potatoes, leeks, and “n’importe quel légume frais”. This always baffled me. Not because I didn’t understand French (I did, she was saying “any fresh vegetables”), but because it seemed impossible to consistently make the same soup over again.

A potage soup.

Of course, her reply was that you wouldn’t want to make the same soup! I insisted that you could make a good recipe and remake it for yourself or guests if needed. “Oh, mais c’est toujours bon,” she would say, proclaiming it is always good.

If it was so seemingly straightforward, what was there to worry about? Honestly, I was afraid that I would end up with baby food. Isn’t that what you think of when you think of blended, boiled carrots? It seems that the French don’t automatically think that. Instead, they think that it would probably taste good in a soup. You know what? They are right. Again.

When I got over my fear of accidentally making baby food, I finally gave it a try. I forced my mother to give me some guide lines. There was a lot of “I don’t knows” and “Just try its” but after a lot of cursing and yelling in French, I was able to find some consistencies. My biggest tip is using leeks and potatoes. Root vegetables usually work spectacularly, but broccoli, cauliflower, and even spinach work well too. Myself, I am fond of adding lots of carrots.

Don’t let this limit you though, make any additions you want or increase any of the quantities. Change it up, try other combinations. Look at what is on sale in the store and try those. This can be a deliciously cheap soup.

Ingredients
Makes enough for six good servings. For extra richness, cream or creme fraiche can be added either at the table or in the last 30 seconds of heating (don’t boil it after the cream is added).
3 large carrots
3-4 leeks
3 big potatoes
1 onion
2 turnips
water
salt, pepper to taste

Directions
1. Wash and peel all the vegetables and cut into approx. 1 inch chunks.
2. Put them in a large pot. Add salt and pepper to taste. I season very lightly. Fill the pot with just enough water to come to the top of the vegetables. Heat on medium high and bring to a boil.
3. Once boiling, reduce the heat to maintain a simmer and cover. Cook for 30-45 minutes, until the vegetables are all soft and tender.
4. Blend in batches using a stand blender to directly in the pot with a stick blender.

Tabbouleh

I have seen almost as many variations on the spelling as I have with the quantity and types of ingredients used. You say tabouli, I say tabboulé. I’ll defer to Wikipedia and call it tabbouleh (even though it has three different spellings listed–tabbouleh, tabouleh, and tabouli). I tend to spell it tabboulé or taboulé, but that’s because I learned this recipe in France and spell it the French way.

This Mid-Eastern/Lebanese dish can be greatly varied and is a wonderful and easy dish to prepare for vegetarians (or vegans). Most tabbouleh recipes start with a central core group of ingredients: parsley, mint, tomato, onion, lemon juice, olive oil and various seasonings all mixed with a grain, usually bulgur or couscous. Recipes vary wildly as to the quantities of ingredients, showcasing some flavors and minimizing others. Some recipes seem to be mostly parsley while others have much more grain. This recipe, as you can tell by the photos, is the latter variety.

Tabbouleh

I have always favored this as a couscous based dish that can be served along side other mid-eastern style foods. The couscous helps give a base for the other flavors to mingle. Many parsley heavy recipes overwhelm the palate camouflaging other flavors. (I have had some delicious versions of both, so feel free to increase the amount of parsley and decrease the quantity of couscous to suit your liking.)

Ingredients
10 oz dry couscous
4 to 5 roma tomatoes, diced
1/2 English cucumber, diced (these are the longer ones that are normally wrapped in plastic to prevent moisture loss)
1 red onion, minced
1 clove of garlic, minced
4 lemons, juiced
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 bunch of parsley (flat-leaf), minced
1 small bunch of mint, minced
salt and pepper

Directions
1. Cook the couscous according to the directions on the packet and allow to cool to room temperature while dicing/mincing/preparing the rest of the ingredients.
2. Combine everything in a large bowl and mix well. Serve chilled or at room temperature. (The tomatoes can be added before serving.)

Tabbouleh

Quinoa with bacon, leeks, carrots...

There are even more things in this dish than the title suggests. Parmesan and pine nuts round out the cast of characters, both playing a minor, but important, role as a last second addition on the plate.

Apparently even Top Chef Masters can’t resist using this in their dishes. Last night Zooey Deschanel was served a quinoa pasta with an heirloom-tomato salsa (recipe here). If you have any other suggestions for preparing this grain, let me know!

Ingredients
2 rashers of bacon (diced)
1 small onion (diced)
2 carrots (diced)
2 leeks (diced)
5-6 cremini mushrooms (about a cup) (diced)
Grated Parmesan
Pine nuts (or slivered almonds)

Ingredients

1. Place a large skillet over medium heat until hot. Add the bacon.
2. When the bacon starts to render some if it’s fat (2-4 minutes), add the onion and turn the heat to medium-high. Cook until the onion softens, stirring occasionally (about 5 minutes). The bacon should render enough fat that you don’t need to add any oil. If the skillet ever looks dry, add a drop of olive oil.
3. Add the carrots, stir, turn off the heat, and cover. (This will gently cook the carrots, keeping them firm.) In a small pot, boil two cups of water and 1/2 tsp salt.
4. When the water comes to a boil, add the quinoa, stir once, reduce heat to low and cover. The water should be at a bare simmer. Cook for 13-15 minutes, until the water has been absorbed.
5. 5 minutes into the cooking time of the quinoa, return the skillet to medium heat and add the mushrooms. (Keep skillet uncovered.) Cook for 5 minutes, then stir in the diced leeks. Cook for about 5 minutes more, or until the quinoa is done.
6. Combine everything in a large serving bowl or casserole dish (or just on your plate if you don’t want to clean something else).
7. Sprinkle on some Parmesan and pine nuts, to taste.

Heath tip: Omit the bacon for an even healthier dish. As a bonus, it becomes vegetarian!

Obviously it was going to taste really bad. I’d be better off with beans on toast. No, no, no. I should make an effort and try it.

The first time I made it, I cooked it plain. I wanted to figure out how it tasted and how it cooked. The directions seemed easy enough. I boiled two cups of water, added a cup of quinoa, covered the pot and turned the heat to low. About 13 minutes later the water had evaporated and I risked a taste. It was good! I sauteed some vegetables and topped the quinoa with the veggs. Mighty tasty.

Quinoa, with vegetables.

The taste of this grain is slightly mild and nutty. It feels less dense than whole wheat pasta or brown rice. As far as texture, it is light and fluffy, similar to couscous. As I ate, I considered the types of foods this would pair well with. Any earthy vegetables–carrots, shallots, onions, leeks, turnip, celery, etc. Smoked meats, like bacon, would complement the nuttiness beautifully. Adding a grassy, hard cheese, like aged Parmesan would be good too. Taking it back to basics and serving it plain as a sidekick to roast chicken or a steak would work well too.

Stay tuned to see what I finally decided to do…

Basic Quinoa
Note that most quinoa needs to be thoroughly rinsed before cooking/eating it. Mine came pre-rinsed, but I gave it a quick rinse anyway.
Ingredients
1 cup quinoa
2 cups water (or chicken/vegetable broth)
1/2 tsp salt (or more to taste)

Directions

1. Bring the 2 cups of water to a boil in a medium saucepan.
2. Add the salt and the quinoa. Return to a boil. Cover. Reduce heat to low (just to a simmer). Wait 10-15 minutes.
3. Fluff with a fork, serve.