Spicy Garlic Chickpea Salad with Lemony Vinaigrette

My work week is always jam packed; I work long days and when I'm at work, I'm lucky if I can take my breaks (and people think librarians only read books...). The food I take to work needs to be quick to make, easy to eat, and delicious, which is not always easy to do.

This chickpea "salad" is perfect and meets all of the above requirements! It also makes perfect leftovers as the flavors meld together and get better over time.

I love that you just throw everything into the bowl and dive in. That's my kind of eating!

Spicy Garlic Chickpea Salad with Fennel and Roasted Tomatoes

Extra-virgin olive oil
Two 15 oz. can of chickpeas (drained and rinsed)
4 crushed garlic cloves
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
2 pints cherry tomatoes
Rosemary and thyme to taste
1 cup brown rice
Jarred pepperoncini
Small bulb of fennel
Shredded Parmesan
Fresh parsley

Cook 1 cup of rice as directed on package and set aside. In a medium saute pan, add chickpeas, garlic, and red pepper flakes. Saute for 6-8 minutes or until chickpeas start to blister. Season with salt and pepper; set aside.

Meanwhile, pre-heat oven to 450 degrees. Toss cherry tomatoes with dried rosemary and thyme and olive oil. Roast until they're blistered and beginning to burst open; about 20 minutes.

Put some rice in a bowl and ladle about 1/3 cup of the chickpea mixture into bowl. Add tomatoes and pepperoncini (to taste). Shave about 4-5 pieces of fennel from the bulb (the white part) and add to the bowl. Add Parmesan, parsley, and lemony vinaigrette. Mix to combine and chow down!

Lemon vinaigrette recipe can be found here.
Recipe adapted from bon appetit magazine.

This recipe is super healthy, gluten-free, and can be made vegan and dairy-free (just omit the Parmesan cheese)!

Coconut Ginger Soup

Ever since going gluten-free, I have had trouble finding soups that don't contain gluten fillers. This is especially difficult because the kinds of soups I most prefer are bisques, thicker soups usually made by pureeing the ingredients together. I had the place all to myself last night and decided that I'd make my own gluten-free soup, one that I could repeat and love!

One of my favorite cuisines are Indian and Thai, both of which tend to use a lot of coconut milk in their food. Needless to say, I've become obsessed with this stuff. I almost always have a can or two in my kitchen at any given time. 

But it's been a while since I made a good soup. The last soup I attempted to make was an Indian mulligatawny soup with lentils (and also coconut milk). It did not turn out well. Also, my hubby doesn't prefer to have soup for dinner (or lunch, really) because he doesn't find them substantial enough. As a result, I really don't make soup too often. But since I'm trying to curb the type of snack foods I eat, I picked up a few ingredients to make myself a soup snack during the week. This recipe was a success.

Coconut Ginger Soup

Adapted from Gloriously Gluten-Free Cookbook

Makes about 8 servings

Ingredients:

1 cup sliced mushrooms

2 cups loosely packed spinach leaves

2 tablespoons grated ginger

1 tbs oil

3 cups vegetable stock

2 14 oz. cans coconut milk

1/2 tablespoon cornstarch

3 tablespoons brown sugar

Cayenne pepper to taste

Salt and pepper to taste

Heat oil in a large pot over medium high heat. Add spinach, mushrooms, and ginger and cook while stirring, until the spinach begins to wilt, about 2 minutes. 

Add 2 1/2 cups of the broth to pot and stir well. Bring to a boil and add the coconut milk and cayenne pepper. Cook, stirring, about 3 to 4 minutes. 

In a small bowl, combine the last 1/2 cup of broth with cornstarch and stir until smooth. Pour the mixture into the soup and stir well. Add the brown sugar. Cook until desired thickness is reached, about 10 to 15 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve hot with cilantro as a garnish. 

How to Make Kheer (Indian Rice Pudding)

In case you didn't read yesterday's post, Luis and I spent our weekend in Florida for a wedding. We didn't have much time to explore, but were able to slip out Saturday morning and hit up some of the shops and eat. We noticed that there were a ton of Indian restaurants along the main road and made the decision to try one called Green Chili Indian Bistro.

While the website might not suggest fine dining, we finely dined. The server persuaded us to partake of the featured buffet. Let it be known, that I eschew buffets. I hate them. But as we sat down, the scent of curry, butter, cilantro and ginger told me that maybe I should try the dishes simmering in their golden serving pots. So we went with the buffet.

It was the best decision on my life. Alright, I am over-exaggerating, but in terms of culinary experiences, then yes, it was a good decision. Luis ordered an Indian beer and we filled multiple plates full of incredibly flavored dishes. They served butter chicken, which are cubes of chicken simmered in butter, marinated, and served in a creamy tomato sauce; Aloo Bengun, potatoes and eggplant cooked in a zesty sauce; Chana Masala, which is chickpeas cooked in a tomato sauce with ginger and onions; and my favorite was a dish called Bund Gobi and Matar, which is essentially cabbage and peas simmered in garam masala and curry spices.

But what finished off the meal perfectly was the kheer, or Indian-style rice pudding that they served in tiny bowls. I may or may not have gone up for five or more servings... It was a snow white dessert that had a hint of rose water. I was stunned. The minute I got home, I began to search for the recipe. I found one today and immediately got cooking. I based my recipe off of Manjula's Kitchen recipe. I did alter a few things based on what I had in my kitchen. 

Kheer (Rice Pudding) 

Ingredients:

1 teaspoon of butter

1/4 cup rice (you can use any kind of white colored rice for this)

3 cups milk (I used almond milk)

1/4 cup sugar

Generous pinch of saffron

A pinch of cardamom (or allspice)

Crushed almonds (optional) 

Directions:

Wash the rice until the water is clear. I used a strainer and watched until the rinsing water was clear. Melt butter over medium heat. Add rice and saute for about 2 minutes. 

Add the milk and stir to coat. Cook until rice is tender, stirring often as the milk will sit on the bottom of the pan. Continue cooking until milk becomes creamy and reduces to about half of its volume. 

Add sugar, cardamom (or allspice), saffron and let simmer for another few minutes, covered with the lid. 

Turn off the heat and let the rice sit in the sauce. It will thicken as it cools. If the sauce isn't creamy enough, simply simmer the rice covered another time. Serve warm or chilled with the chopped almonds as a garnish.

Makes about two servings. 

This recipe is gluten-free, and can be made vegan and dairy-free, provided you use almond or coconut milk and a different oil for the initial step.