2008 New Recipe--Spicy Chickpeas with Ginger

[nofunlatte]

I wish I was doing as well with my "lose weight" resolution as I am with my "make at least one new recipe a week" one. I went to the doctor today and was appalled by the number on the scale! Well, hopefully the winter is over and I can go running more (I've got a half-marathon to run in less than 2 months). Thankfully, this recipe is relatively quick, easy, delicious, healthy, and lower in fat. It's a modification of one from Deborah Madison's Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone, a desert island cookbook for me if there ever was one. I halved the recipe and made some small changes, which I'll note. This makes 3-4 servings.

1.5 Tbsp light olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
1 bay leaf
3 cardamom pods, seeds removed and crushed (I didn't have the ground cardamom called for)
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
1 large clove garlic, pressed
1 Tbsp ginger, grated
1 15 oz. can chickpeas
2 whole tomatoes from a can of peeled whole tomatoes, chopped
chickpea broth (from the can) and tomatoe juice (from the can) to equal 1 cup liquid
--you can also use water

In a skillet over medium heat, warm the oil and then add the onion and pepper. Cook until the onions are somewhat brown. Reduce the heat. Add the bay leaf, cardamom, cumin, coriander, garlic, ginger and tomatoes. Add some salt (a few shakes if using the liquid from the cans, about 1/2 tsp if using water). Add some black pepper. Cook for a few minutes and then add the chickpeas and the liquid. Simmer until reduced to a consistency you like (I reduced by about 1/2 to 2/3). Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Now, the traditional way to serve these is over rice, I'd assume. However, I served them over whole wheat spaghetti and thought it worked just wonderfully. Deborah Madison has you season this with lemon juice, but I forgot about the juice (I'd squeezed some, but just plain forgot about it). I don't think it needs it. YMMV.

[AMFM]

i just have to point out what a hilariously chowhound-y substitution it is when you have to crush cardamom pods and remove seeds because you have those but you don't have dried! :) LOL sounds yummy. i do something similar with fresh cilantro (not ground) instead of the cardamom. will sometimes use coconut milk or chicken broth and other veggies i have on hand - my kids love it!
that's an awesome resolution. good luck with both of them.

[wineaux]

I too am trying to lose weight by means of the South Beach program. I'm in week #4 and this delicious-sounding recipe would fit in quite well. However, I highly prefer soaking dried garbanzos & cooking them myself as opposed to canned. It produces much more of a nutty flavor and not so mushy. I would imagine this substitution would work just fine.

Thanks for the suggestion!

[ChiliDude]

D'accordo (Italian for 'I agree') about the dried cece (garbanzo beans). I never use canned garbanzos. In fact, I only buy dried beans, lentils and split peas. These legumes do not last long in my kitchen because I use them up quickly. My total cholesterol is down to 123 from over 300. Even the use of cholesterol lowering meds did not do as much good as beans eaten on a daily basis.

[AMFM]

do both of you have other good bean recipes that don't add a lot of excess carbs (the beans are "good" carbs so they're fine!)? my mom's diabetic and can't take anti cholesterol meds because of side effects so i know she'd love good recipes. plus my kids and i eat tons of beans so i would too! thanks!

[Honey Bee]

I pulled a recipe off another thread about salads and made it for lunch. Only changes I made were to add chopped chicken breats and reduce oil from 2T to 1T. Original recipe was posted by fellow hound, Kasiav.

Edamame With Cilantro, Almonds, And Scallions

I lb. shelled edamame, cooked about 3 minutes in boiling water, then drained and cooled
2 Tablespoons sesame seed oil
1 Tablespoon rice wine vinegar
2 Tablespoons soy sauce
1/4 cup sliced almonds
2 scallions sliced thin
1/4 cup chopped cilantro (or mint if you don't like cilantro)

Combine sesame seed oil, soy sauce, and vinegar together. Toss the edamame and the dressing together in a large bowl, then add the mint, scallions, and almonds and toss again. Serve at room temperature.

[AMFM]

Yummy. I LOVE cilantro - although i bet mint would be good too. thanks. my mom will love this as well.

[nofunlatte]

In Deborah Madison's recipe, she called for either cooked or canned chickpeas, in which case you would use the chickpea cooking broth. I wanted to make something quick and see no reason not to use the canned beans, but if you have the time to cook them yourself, why not! Chickpeas are actually one of the few beans I buy canned because they always take me so darn long to cook and sometimes I just want to make something quick (though lentils, which I love, certainly fill the fill for quick-cooking beans).

And ChiliDude, good for you! I think the reason I'm blessed with good cholesterol numbers is because of my high bean intake. Keep up the good work (and many congrats on finding a non-pharmaceutical solution).

[gordeaux]

Crushing cardamom seeds fresh out of the pod is an absolute staple in Indian cooking. It is FAR better than dried ground. There's a reason it is a 'chowhound-y' solution - it's the better way to add the flavor of cardamom. If you're not used to biting on a sunflower seed sized chunk of it in the final dish however, it may be QUITE a surprising jolt of flavor.

[AMFM]

oh i wasn't saying it wasn't worth it - i too eat them and know how yummy and intense they are. i just thought it was funny since most people i know would have to go buy the dried - let alone have the pods! :)

[nofunlatte]

After you pointed it out, AMFM, I did see the hilarity in the situation! I think it's the subbing of a more "complicated" item for the more convenient one, implying that hounds would have the more exotic stuff in one's cupboard.

"I didn't have any butter in the house, but I had some cream, so I churned my own"!

[AMFM]

exactly! :)