40 clove chickpeas and broccoli

There is not much to be said about cooking with a busy schedule because usually with a busy schedule, there is not much to be said about cooking. In our Franco-American household, either we take 2 hours to cook (a mechouia, for example) or we order pizzas, because somewhere in between those two extremes, we just don’t know how to handle it. With one Masters student and one PhD student, some days there just isn’t enough time to take a break and cook. But we are learning, slowly but surely, how to make quick, delicious, hearty low preparation dishes.

This recipe comes from the book of my dreams at the moment, Appetite for Reduction — though who said anything about reduction (didn’t I mention pizzas just before?) What I really like about this book are the recipes with few and basic ingredients. We just don’t have the time to go on a full blown mission in search for haloumi!

If you like garlic, this recipe is for you, though I must admit, the Beard said we could even add more next time. Roasted garlic becomes less offensive than its raw twin.

Serves 4

What you’ll need:

• 1 lb broccoli, cut into large spears, stems chopped into 1/2″ pieces
• 1- cloves of garlic, smashed (break them into individual cloves and then smash them with the flat side of your knife, you can peel off the skin, the clove will be relatively whole still)
• 1 15oz can chickpeas, drained & rinsed
• 2 tsp olive oil
• 1/2 tsp salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tsp lemon zest
• 1 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 1 cup vegetable broth

Now what?

• Preheat  oven to 400. Put the broccoli, garlic and chickpeas in a 9×13″ baking pan, or some sort of vessel where they can be spread out. Drizzle with a reasonable amount of olive oil (2 tsp to be precise), salt, pepper, lemon zest and dried oregano. Toss to coat every bit of it. Spray it with some cooking spray (or a little more olive oil) and throw it in the oven.
• After about 15 minutes, flip the mixture. Bake for 15 minutes more, and then remove from the oven to flip one final time. Once all is flipped to assure even cooking, add the vegetable broth. With a spatula, scrape all of the delicious stuck pieces off of the bottom of the pan and put back in the oven for another 15 minutes.
• Once it is done, the broccoli will be slightly browned and the garlic nice and tender.

We ate this with some lemony couscous!

Bon app!

Veganism Day 3: Chickpea Veggie Burger with Tahini Sauce

Day 2 to 4: Veganism is tasty!

-by The Beard

So here we are, beginning our little journey into veganism. My guide’s aunt –a prominent vegan– used the right words for a better start: ‘do not replace dairy for vegan junk food.’ Yes, because it would be so easy: we’d live off salted peanuts, lots of wasabi chips, potatoes and raw carrots, and fake butter and baguette. And Coke. Well, I already know (thanks to my not-refunded 70 euros visit to the endocrinologist, which is unbelievable here!) that, due to my anarchist regulation of insulin that we call ‘pre-diabetes,’ I am not really allowed to eat French baguette or potatoes, for it turns into sugar once in my blood. Now, I already inquired about Coke. You, the people of the United States, are lucky: Coke is vegan. However, we Europeans, decided that Coke should contain Beta Carotene 10% DG/F. Can this really be… FISH GELATIN?! ‘Yes, Sir.’ So that fresh bottle went down the drain. Problem solved. Forever. In France.

Now, there is one thing I must say is very important: I am thankful for my guide. Because this chickpea and apricot tajine was the lightest and tastiest dinner I had in months! For several reasons. First of all, there are some wonderbarful (huh?) secret ingredients in there: cinnamon and ginger were my favorite. Then, because it came after the wonderful meatballs and gravy pasta my guide’s momma used to cook every Sunday, allowing me in the guide’s childhood memories. After carrying two gigantic bags full of 10 kilos (20 pounds) vegetables for 25 minutes (do Americans have a different time measurements, requiring the use of a converter?!) because I live right in the heart of the city where cars are NOT allowed, I noticed that the tajine had been forgotten in the fridge. The last reason why this dinner was the best in months is because it was delivered to my door at 7 pm, right when I felt hungry again!

I don’t want to spoil the day 3 recipe, but it was just as wonderful. I also cook on my own, but it goes back to more basic things (soups and salads mainly). And I have no camera. I’ll keep you posted…

 

Chickpea Veggie Burger with Tahini Sauce

(adapted from shape.com, serves 6)

What you’ll need:

For the tahini sauce:

• 1 cup hot water
• 1/4 cup tahini (sesame-seed paste)
• 3 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
• Dash of salt
• 2 garlic cloves, minced

For the chickpea burgers:

• 1 (15.5oz) (400g) can of chickpeas (garbanzo beans), drained and rinsed
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 1 carrot, grated
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
• 1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/4 cup dry breadcrumbs, divided

What now?

1. For the sauce, combine all ingredients in a bowl and beat until smooth. It is a little liquid but it’s perfect for the veggie burgers nonetheless.
2. For the veggie burgers, combine all of the ingredients except for the breadcrumbs in a food processor and process until smooth.
3. Scrape the sides of the bowl occasionally to ensure equal food processing.
4. Mix the combination with the breadcrumbs in a large bowl.
5. Divide the bean mixture into six equal portions, shaping each into a round patty-like disc. I tried both thicker and thinner patties and both were equally as good.
6. Heat 2 teaspoons vegan margarine in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.
7. Add patties to pan; cook 5 minutes on each side or until browned. Mine were not crispy, crunchy all the way through, but they were still delightful.
8. Serve in a pita with fresh onion, tahini sauce, lettuce, tomato.

We ate this with an endive salad, roasted Brussels sprouts,(and french fries and a pickle, to be 100% honest).

(the Beard liked his with ketchup)

Veganism Day 1: Chickpea and Apricot Tagine

Coming back after a two month + hiatus.  A lot has happened in two months.  I took a trip to the United States and indulged in so much pizza that I didn’t even know what to do with myself.  I confirmed the fact that, although the US has foods that quench my hunger in a cultural sense, the quality of the vegetables and the fruits have rien à voir (nothing to do) with the ones in France — (a quick google search translates ‘rien à voir’ to ‘it’s apples and oranges!’ heh.)  I couldn’t believe the choices in the supermarkets, but when push comes to shove, nothing is more odorous than the fresh market produce that I get once a week at the Boulevard de la Marne.  But anyway, passons.  Let’s get back to the topic at hand.  My return.

My return is special.  Because I am coming back with a new flavor of the month – as we should say. Veganism. Hmm.  Veganism? For someone who has eaten not one but TWO fondues this week alone? It doesn’t seem to add up.  Which is exactly why I am doing it.  Cheese and I have a tumultuous relationship.  As in, it ruins me.  After watching two particularly enlightening documentaries on the food industry and the effect of dairy products on our health, I have mulled over the idea for some time.   Let’s add the fact that hereditary can be cruel to us.  And so I’d like to ideally take the best care of my body that I can – that is to say before my genes decide for me!

And if I were to actually be a practicing yogi (oh how I miss my yoga classes these days) I would be taking the nonviolent route.  Essentially, I want to see if kindness to my body and to other sentient beings will affect me, for the better.  Bref.  My thoughts are unclear. In order to help with unclear thoughts, this next month shall be co-blogged by The Beard.  He has decided to follow me in my pursuits. For someone who eats a whole lot of mozzarella, I’m just really impressed by his kindness to join me.

The Beard, everybody.

Cheese is my dope. But there’s nothing you can’t put aside, really. At the origin was vegetarianism –which seems to have accompanied my life forever. There’s no way back, but there is a way forward. Veganism. Veganism? For I believe that the voiceless should talk. Not only animals, but anyone. But this is not it. Anyone who has ever experienced this strange moment when, full of animal protein, you feel like you owe it to someone. And as a Frenchman, let me tell you: we don’t like to owe anything to anyone, especially not on food-related matters. Someone opens your eyes. You agree. If you gotta talk the talk, you also gotta walk the walk. I’ve therefore become a follower. Because my guide to veganism is wise and tempered. Not a radical. Not like me. This move toward veganism –even though I don’t intend on becoming a permanent one today– is therefore an initiating journey into ethical and culinary improvement. Out of curiosity. And out of love.

To celebrate February 1st, one whole day of veganism, I give you the utmost delicious way to start 28 days of a plant based diet thanks to Ms. Kim.  Kim is a British colleague/marvel who knows how to cook with flavour (see what I did there, with the spelling of that word?) I want her to teach me everything she knows.  For those of you who don’t know : a tagine is a typical Moroccan dish that often incorporates a surprising fruit ingredient into a slow cooked dish.  The addition of the cinnamon is surprisingly welcome!

Chickpea & Apricot Tagine

(serves 5-6 people)

What you’ll need:

• 1 onion, chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 1 tsp ground turmeric
• 2 carrots, cut into large pieces
• 1 big sweet potato, peeled and chopped
• 1 tbsp harissa paste
• 1 can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
• a bayleaf
• 16 fl oz vegetable stock
• as many dried apricots as you’d like, cut up
• 1 can chopped tomatoes

Now what?

1. Fry the onion and garlic until fragrant.  Add the spices and cook for a few minutes.  Then add the remaining ingredients in that order, mixing for about a minute in between each addition.
2. Let is simmer for around a half an hour. “Cook until scrumptious” to quote Ms. Kim.
3. Add salt and freshly ground black pepper and mint (or parsley or coriander).
4. Serve over whole wheat couscous.

Honestly, the choices are endless, you can swap in or out any of the vegetables for other root or non-root veggies.  The vegan sky is the limit.

Middle Eastern Chickpea Salad

This recipe is a vegan alternative that I made for a Faux-French-Fourth of July that I was hosting.  The French aren’t necessarily familiar with American food culture and they believe our haut cuisine to be a big mac from McDonalds (sadly, this is no exaggeration.)  It was generally appreciated by all (despite a slight skepticism on the part of the French for all things that are both ‘culinary’ and ‘American.’)

The reason that I like this summer salad is because it is chock full of ingredients that are good for you and because none of them are necessarily annoying to prepare.  If something requires a lot of chopping, I immediately throw in the towel (or as the French say, I throw in the sponge) because I can’t be bothered.  The recipe originally called for brown rice, which I imagine would’ve been good but I only had couscous on hand and it was fabulous nonetheless.  I imagine you could pack more of a punch using quinoa for a little extra protein.  This is delightful, sort of a summer vegetable salad (rather than a winter fruit salad!) And the good news is, the longer it sits in the fridge, the tastier it gets!  Another positive point? My phobia of raw chickpeas dissipates with this salad because of the complex combination of flavors and textures that this dish promises!

(adapted by VegNews)

Serves 10 (good as an entrée but also as a picnic side salad!)

What You’ll Need:

• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
• Peel of 1 lemon, cut into strips 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 minced garlic clove
• 2 red peppers, cut into wide strips
• 3-1/2 cups cooked couscous (or brown rice)
• 1 15-ounce can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 24 cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1 cup pitted kalamata olives
• 1 cucumber, peeled, deseeded, and diced
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
• 1/4 cup finely diced red onion

Now what?

1. Preheat oven and broil red peppers on a baking sheet until black and bubbly.   Place the red peppers in a covered bowl for five minutes.  After, it should be very easy to peel off the skin and voila! Roasted red peppers! Dice them up!
2. Combine lemon juice, lemon strips, olive oil and minced garlic in a bowl as salad dressing.
3. Combine the remaining ingredients (red peppers, chickpeas, couscous, tomatoes, olives, cucumber, parsley and red onion) and coat with salad dressing.
4. Let it marinate for a few hours in the refrigerator and enjoy cold!

Roasted Chickpeas

I have mixed feelings about chickpeas.  I adore hummus. Always have, always will.  But up until this point of my life, I’ve been uncertain about raw chickpeas.  Their texture and taste never seemed to float my boat.  I’ve heard a LOT about roasting them in the oven but never got around to trying it until this week.  Let me just say, I think I’ll be roasting them weekly from here on out. It makes for an easy, delicious and healthy (who me?) snack for the masses! And the options for seasoning are endless.  Go ahead, eat these without feeling at all guilty….or serve them at your next apero/party!

What you’ll need

• 2 cans chickpeas (aka garbanzo beans)
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• ½ tsp sea salt
• ½ tsp paprika
• ½ tsp garlic powder
• ¼ tsp cumin
• a pinch of cayenne

Now what?

1. Preheat oven to 400 f/ 205 c.
2. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.  Mix together ingredients until chickpeas are well coated.
3. Spread chickpeas out on baking sheet and put in the oven for 20 minutes.  Mix them around and continue baking 15-20 minutes or until they are golden brown and crispy.  You may have to taste several of them to be sure.  Don’t be alarmed if they start popping all over the place… consider it mini fireworks!