Yummy chickpea recipes to try this summer

If you too, like us, are guilty of making chole every time you buy chickpeas, then here’s some food-spiration. Add ’em to your salads, use as sandwich spread or toss them into a healthy rice bowl — turns out our good ol’ chana is quite the versatile wonder food

Ingredients
4 ripe avocados, halved, pits removed
For chickpea topping
425 gm chickpeas, rinsed, boiled and drained
3 tbsp tandoori masala
¼ tsp sea salt
1 tbsp (15 ml) grape seed or avocado oil tahini sauce (or green chutney)
Lemon juice
Fresh parsley, chopped 6 baby tomatoes, diced ¼ red onion, diced

Method
Take boiled and drained chickpeas in a mixing bowl and toss with sea salt and tandoori masala spice blend.
Heat skillet; add oil. and chickpeas to pan and saute, stirring frequently, until slightly crispy and browned — about 8-10 minutes. If browning too quickly, turn down heat.
Once the chickpeas are browned and fragrant, remove from heat and set aside to cool. Taste and adjust seasonings as needed, adding more salt or masala as desired.

For Tahini Sauce
¼ cup tahini
1 tbsp maple syrup
½lemon, juiced
2-4 tbsp hot water to thin (Mix all the above well) to serve: Halve avocados and remove pits. You can either scoop out the avocado or leave it in the skin — removing it from the skin is a little more messy, but it does make it easier to eat. Top the scooped avocados with a generous squeeze of lemon juice, the masala chickpeas you prepared, parsley, tomatoes, onions and finish with tahini sauce. Serve immediately — best when fresh.

Ingredients
For Teriyaki
1 tsp sesame seeds
1 tsp cornstarch ½ cup low-sodium soy sauce
2 tbsp mirin
2 tbsp dark brown sugar (or honey)
1 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp grated fresh ginger 1 tsp sesame oil

Method
In a dry skillet, toast sesame seeds over medium heat, shaking the pan occasionally until the sesame seeds are fragrant and begin to darken. Set aside. n
In a small bowl, stir together cornstarch with 2 tsps warm water. Set aside.
In a small sauce pan with high sides, combine the soy sauce with mirin, brown sugar, garlic, ginger, and 1/3 cup of water.
Bring sauce to a low boil over medium-high, then reduce to medium heat and stir in the cornstarch mixture. Continue stirring until the sauce thickens, about 5 minutes.
Remove from heat and stir in the sesame oil and sesame seeds.

For Broccoli Bowl
2 cups brown rice, cooked 2 tsps olive oil ½ bunch scallions, diced 2 cups broccoli florets
¾ cup chickpeas, boiled and drained Sesame seeds, for topping

Method
Heat olive oil in a medium skillet over medium-low heat.
Stir in the scallions and cook until soft, 1-2 minutes.
Add broccoli florets and let cook for a minute. Add 3 tablespoons water to the pan, cover, and let broccoli steam until tender, 2 to 3 minutes (may be slightly longer depending on the size of your florets.)
Remove the lid, stir in chickpeas and cook until chickpeas are warm.
Add ¼ cup of the teriyaki sauce and cook for 1 minute more. Serve on a bed of brown rice.

This 30-minute Chickpea Sunflower Sandwich with smashed chickpeas and roasted sunflower seeds in a simple dressing is healthy lunch perfection.

Ingredients
For Sandwich
500 gms chickpeas, boiled and drained
¼ cup sunflower seeds, roasted 3 tbsp mayo (or tahini)
½ tsp dijon or spicy mustard (if using tahini instead of mayo, use 1/4 tsp) 1 tbsp maple syrup (or honey)
¼cup chopped red onion
2 tbsp fresh dill (soa-kura or savaa), finely chopped salt and pepper (to taste)
4 pieces rustic bread, lightly toasted Sliced avocado, onion, tomato, and or lettuce for serving

For Garlic herb sauce
¼ cup hummus juice of ½ lemon 1 tsp dried dill 2 cloves garlic, minced
Water to thin
Sea salt to taste

Method
Prepare garlic herb sauce by mixing all ingredients well and set aside.
Add chickpeas to a mixing bowl and lightly mash with a fork for texture. Then add sunflower seeds, mayo, mustard, maple syrup, red onion, dill, salt and pepper and mix with a spoon. Taste and adjust seasonings as needed.
Toast bread (if desired) and prepare any other sandwich toppings you desire (tomato, onion, lettuce).
Scoop a healthy amount of filling onto two of the pieces of bread, add desired toppings and sauce, and top with other two slices of bread.
Sunflower-chickpea mixture will keep covered in the fridge for up to a few days, making it great for quick, weekday lunches!

Ingredients

2 sweet potatoes, baked 1 cup chickpeas boiled till soft, drained ¼ cup teriyaki sauce

Sesame seeds, to top Scallions, to top

Method

In a sauce pan, combine chickpeas and teriyaki sauce. Cook over medium-low heat for 6-8 minutes until sauce is warm and chickpeas are starting to make a popping sound.

Cut a slit in the sweet potatoes and pinch open to form a hole. Divide chickpea mixture between the two potatoes

Top with a sprinkle of sesame seeds and scallions.