Cook the Book: Pasta and Chickpeas with Plenty of Parsley and Garlic
Just hearing pasta and chickpeas doesn't really get my salivary glands going. But pasta and chickpeas with parsley and garlic? And sage? And hot red pepper flakes? And Parmesan? ...Okay, I'll go for that. Deborah Madison also suggests variations using fresh tomatoes, grated lemon zest, lentils, or ricotta cheese.
Pasta and Chickpeas with Plenty of Parsley and Garlic
- makes 4 servings -
Ingredients
1 tablespoon olive oil, plus extra to finish
1/2 large onion, diced
A few pinches of hot red pepper flakes
1 1/2 cups cooked chickpeas or 1 15-ounce can, preferably organic, liquid reserved
1 big bunch of flat-leaf parsley, the leaves stripped from the stems
3 plump garlic cloves
Small handful of sage leaves
Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
3/4 pound whole wheat pasta shells
Freshly grated Parmesan
Procedure
1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil for the pasta.
2. Heat the oil in a wide skillet and add the onion and pepper Hakes. Cook for a few minutes, then add the chickpeas. While they're warming, chop the parsley, garlic, and sage together, then toss a third of it into the pan. Season well with salt and pepper, add a little water or chickpea broth to the pan, and cook slowly, adding more liquid as it cooks away.
3. Salt the pasta water and cook the pasta. When done, drain and toss it with the chickpeas, the rest of the parsley mixture, and extra olive oil to taste. Taste for salt and season with freshly ground pepper. Grate some cheese over the top and serve with additional pepper flakes.
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2 Comments:
My favorite vegie dishes are vegie lasagna and bean chili.
philmo at 5:06PM on 11/21/07
I finally made this, and wow, is it tasty! Don't be scared of using the bean water if you use canned chickpeas, because it holds a lot of flavor and gives the sauce some body so it coats the pasta. I took the liberty of adding the zest of one small lemon to the herb-garlic mixture, and the juice of half the lemon — part squeezed in while the liquid simmers, and the rest over the finished dish just before grating the Parmesan. It added a really nice brightness.
gfroerer at 7:04PM on 11/24/07