Chickpea Recipes

Chickpea and Olive Appetizer

A simple and delicious appetizer
to cook on the fly

This delicious recipe is one of the very simple chickpea recipes that are quite common in the Middle Eastern diet.

As I mentioned before chickpeas are staple foods within the Middle East…

In fact, Chickpea beans originated in the Middle East, a part of the world which still relies on this high protein legume and has many recipes with chickpeas as part of its diet. Chickpeas were then grown by the ancient Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans… they were extremely popular in all of these civilizations.

During the 16th century, chickpea beans were brought to other subtropical regions of the world by Spanish and Portuguese explorers and as well by the Indians trader’s. Chickpeas also began to be known as Garbanzo beans, the Latin American name for chickpeas.

Try this one of the many ultra simple chickpea recipes as appetizers or as part of a light meal for your next dinner or lunch, you will not be disappointed!

Serves 4 to 6.

Ingredients

1 cup dried chickpeas, washed and soaked overnight in 8 cups water
1/2 cup black olives, chopped
1/4 cup scallions, finely chopped
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh coriander leaves (cilantro)
1 clove garlic, crushed
salt to taste
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/8 teaspoon chili powder
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons lemon juice

Instructions

1. Place the chickpeas with their water in a saucepan, and bring to a boil, then cook over medium heat for about 2-1/2 hours, or until the chickpeas are tender.

2. Drain; then place the chickpeas in a salad bowl and allow to cool. (Or, substitute half a 19 oz. can of chickpeas, drained.)

3. Add the remaining ingredients and mix thoroughly. Serve immediately.

From "From the Lands of Figs and Olives" by Habeeb Salloum and James Peters

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