Spiced & Roasted Chickpea Salad

Spiced & Roasted Chickpea Salad: aromatic chickpeas, smoky chorizo, tangy tomatoes, soft fresh spinach & zesty lemon & garlic dressing. Easy & delicious.

I’d like to introduce my punchy makeover for the humble chickpea: the Spiced Roasted Chickpea Salad. In this salad I’ve combined the sweet, mild, smoky flavour of paprika with the earthy, nutty tones of cumin and used these spices to give the chickpeas a bit of a flavour boost. If you’ve never tried chickpeas roasted before, prepare to be delighted.

Roasting chickpeas turns them into crisp golden balls that compliment soft spinach wonderfully.

I’ve also added roasted tomatoes and fried Chorizo; both for the flavour and the chewiness they offer. This Spiced & Roasted Chickpea Salad is a bowl of contrasting textures.

A bowlful this Salad is hearty enough to eat on it’ own. The fibre and protein that the chickpeas offer up do help to keep your stomach satisfied until suppertime. That’s good news for those of us trying to cut down on our mid-afternoon nibbling habit. However, if you wanted to add anything to it, pitta bread or tortilla wraps would turn this Spiced & Roasted Chickpea Salad into a very substantial meal.

Whenever I post about salad I like to include a bit of nutritional information to tempt you onto my bandwagon. Today is no exception. It’s time to give chickpeas their dues:

• Chickpeas are rich in soluble dietary fibre, which helps clear cholesterol out of the body, and stabilise blood sugar levels
• Chickpeas are also high in insoluble fibre, which helps to prevent constipation and prevent digestive disorders
• They are an excellent source of manganese, which is important for energy production and antioxidant defences
• Eating chickpeas regularly can help lower bad and total cholesterol
• Studies also suggest that consuming chickpeas regularly can lower the risk of a heart attack
• Chickpeas are great for bone health since they contain iron, phosphate, calcium, magnesium, manganese, zinc and vitamin K. All of these contribute to healthy bone structure and strength
• They have a high iron content that can help boost energy levels. This is particularly important for pregnant or lactating women and growing children
• Chickpeas also have an added bonus for women since they contain phytochemicals called saponins. These can act as antioxidants and could lower the risk of breast cancer

All in all, that seems like plenty of reasons to sink your head into this Spiced & Roasted Chickpea Salad. If you need further convincing, don’t forget those crunchy, aromatic chickpeas, smoky chorizo, tangy tomatoes and the lovely, zesty lemon & garlic dressing that caresses those spinach leaves like the cling-on it is. Lunchbowl sorted.

Spiced & Roasted Chickpea Salad

Jane Saunders

Spiced & Roasted Chickpea Salad: aromatic chickpeas, smoky chorizo, tangy tomatoes, soft fresh spinach & zesty lemon & garlic dressing. Easy & delicious.

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Course: lunch, Main Course, Salad

Cuisine: Worldwide

Keyword: chickpea recipe, chickpea salad, roasted chickpeas

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 40 minutes

Servings: 2 people

Ingredients

For the roasted chickpea salad:

• 1 x 400g / 14oz Can chickpeas
• 1/4 Onion
• 2 Tomatoes
• 1 tbsp Olive oil
• 3/4 tsp Ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp Smoked mild paprika
• 2 Large handfuls baby spinach leaves
• 50 g Chorizo (mildly spiced) - sliced into rings approximately 2.5mm thick

For the dressing:

• 3 tbsp Olive oil
• 1 tbsp Lemon juice
• 1/2 Garlic clove - finely minced
• Salt & pepper

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 180°C/ 350°F/ GM4 and line a baking sheet with baking parchment
• Chop each tomato into 8 pieces and slice the onion into slim wedges
• Drain & rinse the chickpeas. Pat dry with kitchen paper. Tip into a medium sized bowl and add the tomatoes, onion, cumin, paprika, some salt & pepper and the olive oil. Mix thoroughly then spread onto the baking sheet and roast for 30 minutes (or 10-15 minutes longer if you want them crisper). Once cooked remove for the oven and set aside while you prepare the remaining ingredients
• Cook the chorizo in a dry pan until lightly browned. Remove and drain on kitchen paper
• To make the salad dressing, put all of the ingredients into a screw top jar and shake vigorously for 30 seconds until blended
• In a large bowl mix the spinach, chorizo, chickpeas and salad dressing together. Divide between 2 bowls and serve immediately

Have you tried this recipe?Mention @jane_littlesugarsnaps or tag #littlesugarsnaps!