Roasted Chickpeas

What are your plans for that can of chickpeas in your pantry? Going to get all homemade fancy on us and make...yet another batch of hummus? To eat with some veggie sticks, or pita bread? Don't get me wrong. I love hummus. But it doesn't have to be this way! A boring snack rut is no fun. And eating vegan food should be about fun, AT ALL TIMES.

Chickpeas are a wonderful and nutritious legume - my second favorite legume, in fact (remind me to blog about my first favorite sometime...). Roasting them creates a delightfus crunchy texture that is incredibly addictive, yet still full of protein and fiber! And consider this: chickpeas - just waiting to be roasted - are a blank canvas, waiting to be seasoned in infinite spice combinations exactly to your taste.

before:

after:

Roasted Chickpeas, adapted from Anne's Food:

1 cups cooked chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 dash salt
1 dash pepper
5 dashes cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon cumin

Heat oven to 425 degrees F. Spread chickpeas out in a single layer on a baking sheet. Roast for ten minutes. Shake the pan and roast for another ten minutes. Remove sheet from the oven, and toss the chickpeas in a bowl with the oil and spices until everybody is happily coated in deliciousness. Spread the chickpeas back onto the baking sheet and roast until super toasty and brown, between five and fifteen more minutes. Remove from the oven, and serve!

WARNING: You will want to eat these all in one sitting. You may not want to stop. You may want to tell all your friends about this revolutionary way to consume chickpeas, and this amazing blog. These are all perfectly normal, and encouraged, reactions.