chick peas – Simply Splendid Food

Ingredients

1 small butternut squash (about 1 1/2 pounds)

1/2 cup plain whole-milk Greek yogurt

5 garlic cloves (1 finely grated, 4 chopped)

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, divided

Kosher salt, freshly ground pepper

4 tablespoons olive oil, divided, plus more for drizzling

1 (15-ounce) can chickpeas, rinsed, patted dry

1 medium onion, chopped

2 tablespoons of curry powder/paste or vadouvan

2 radishes, trimmed, very thinly sliced (optional)

1 cup parsley, mint, and/or cilantro leaves8

2 tablespoons pomegranate seeds (optional)

Roasted WHOLE Butternut Squash

Instructions

Preheat oven to 425°F. Roast squash directly on oven rack until a paring knife poked through skin easily slides through flesh, 50–65 minutes. Let squash cool until you can handle. Trim ends, halve lengthwise, and scoop out seeds. Tear or cut squash into large pieces; discard skin (it will come off easily as you tear).

Meanwhile, mix yogurt, grated garlic, and 1 Tbsp. lemon juice in a medium bowl; season with salt and pepper.

Heat 2 Tbsp. oil in a large skillet, preferably cast iron, over medium-high. Cook chickpeas, shaking skillet often, until starting to brown and crisp, about 5 minutes. Add onion and chopped garlic and cook, stirring often, until onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Sprinkle in vadouvan (curry powder) and cook, stirring, until chickpeas and onion are coated and mixture is fragrant, about 1 minute. Season with salt and pepper and transfer to a medium bowl. Wipe out skillet.

Heat 2 Tbsp. oil in same skillet over medium-high. Cook squash pieces, cut side down, undisturbed, until browned and caramelized, about 5 minutes. Turn pieces over, remove from heat, and season with salt and pepper. Spoon chickpea mixture over squash, then dollop reserved lemon-garlic yogurt around.

Optional: Toss radishes, herbs, and pomegranate seeds, with remaining 1 Tbsp. lemon juice in a small bowl; drizzle with a splash of oil and season with salt and pepper. Scatter over squash and chickpeas. Finish with a grind or two of pepper.

(Optional) Pomegranate and Pistachio Nuts …you will be glad you added the pomegranate!

**LEMON GARLIC YOGURT TOPPING**: Can Be Served On The Side ( No Pomegranate here).

VARIATIONS

Add greens, kale ships, collard greens, swiss chard, etc. Cranberries are a good ubstitute for pomegranate. Add leftover quinoa or feta cheese cubes. Serve as a veggie tacos. ‘Squash’ Burgers (see below). Lightly mash squash to biuld your burger. If you have more people at the table, add spinach to the mix to extend your dish

VEGGIE BURGER: Curry / Squash/ Chick Peas/ Pomegranate/ Cilantro/ Parsley

9🎶 THREE’S THE CHARM 🎶
(1) TAMARIND (2) SPINACH (3) CHICK PEAS
I had this dish years ago, without all the spices and was not impressed. The spices in this recipe enhance the key flavour of the tamarind. Surprisingly, the 3 jalapeño peppers are not hot in this dish. An EASY 30 MINUTE meal packed with protein and flavour. Leftovers makes a great lunch at the office! Another winner!

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INGREDIENTS

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
½ tsp nigella seeds
1½ tsp fennel seeds ( or anise seeds)
1 medium onion ( chopped )
400 g can chopped tomatoes (san marzano)
3 green jalaeño peppers, seeded and cut into quarter lengths
2-3 tsp monk fruit sweetener ( or stevia, truvia, etc. )
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp turmeric
410 g can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1-2 tbsp tamarind paste ( adjust to taste )
1 tbsp chopped fresh coriander
half a 250g/9oz bag of organic baby spinach leaves
Serving suggestion: natural yogurt and chapatis

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Heat the oil in a saucepan. Fry the nigella and fennel seeds for about 10 second. Add the onion and cook gently for 8-10 minutes until golden.

2. Mix in the tomatoes, jalapeños, sweetener ( Monk fruit ), paprika, turmeric and chickpeas. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 10 minutes. Make sure your dish is stew-like; not too dry. Add water if needed.

3. Stir in the tamarind and coriander. ( (You need to do a taste test here. Add more tamerind to get that tamerind sweet and sour flavour). Add the spinach leaves and stir gently until they’ve just wilted. You can serve as a main course with yogurt and chapatis or as a side dish.

Tamarind Paste

Tamarind and Chick Peas

COOKING TIP: Before starting to cook, do all your chopping and rinse out the chick peas. Check your spice rack to make sure you have all your spices measured and placed in small dishes. ahead of time. This “mise en place” technique makes cooking time much faster.

WARNING: Do not buy tamarind without reading the ingredients on the label. I bought tamarind in a bottle at the grocery store. I neglected to read the label as I was in a hurry. The main ingredient was syrup. Tamarind was the fourth ingredient! I was disappointed. Do not accept substitutes or a bogus spice seller that claims to be tamarind. Without ‘true’ tamarind, this recipe is so – so. I soaked my tamerind block in water took the seeds out and ladled the liquid into the dish. ( About 1 cup ) The difference was like night and day.

DID YOU KNOW? The recipe for WORCESTERSHIRE Sauce contains tamarind? The one ingredient that sets Worcestershire sauce apart is tamarind fruit. The sweetness in this fruit is balanced by its high content of acid, giving it that sweet-sour taste.

TAMARIND is a condiment, a spice and a fruit. Its extract, which tastes deliciously tangy, is one of the most highly valued foods in Asian and Indian cuisine. ( Origin: Africa )

TAMARIND contains an impressive amount of essential minerals such as thiamine, iron, magnesium and phosphorus. Some of its other prominent nutrients include niacin, calcium, vitamin C, copper, fiber and pyridoxine.

Tamarind treats both constipation and diarrhea naturally by increasing the effectiveness of the digestive tract. Tamarind has long been considered a natural laxative. It stimulates your metabolism and also keeps your digestive system strong and improves blood circulation. Good for weight loss. Boost your immune system. Also, it has anti-inflammatory properties.