'bonzo pasta

There's nothing like whole wheat pasta, tomato sauce, lots of garlic and basil. Especially when I need a carbo-boost and know it's going to be a long night.

Adding a smattering of chickpeas into the mix included a healthy touch to a standard recipe. I wasn't the BIGGEST fan of the chickpea/pasta combination, but I'll sacrifice some odd texture for some vitamins for the time being.

I also love shell pasta because it reminds me of the beach and has a great texture. Of course, I haven't been to the beach in ages, but a girl can dream... right?

Recipe: (Martha Stewart - http://www.marthastewart.com/316437/pasta-with-chickpea-tomato-sauce)

Ingredients
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 teaspoon red-pepper flakes
3 cups cooked chickpeas
Coarse salt
1 can (28 ounces) crushed tomatoes
1 can (14.5 ounces) reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 sprig fresh basil, plus torn leaves for garnish
12 ounces medium pasta shells
Grated Parmesan, for serving

Directions

In a medium saucepan, heat oil over medium. Add garlic and red-pepper flakes, and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds (do not brown). Add chickpeas, season with salt, and cook 5 minutes. Add tomatoes and broth, and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, and cook until sauce has reduced slightly, 20 minutes. Add basil, and cook 5 minutes more. Remove basil.

While sauce is cooking, cook pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water until al dente; drain pasta, and return to pot.

Add sauce to pasta, and toss. Serve with Parmesan, and garnish with torn basil.

Homemade hummus

On my endless quest to find healthy snacks, I knew it would soon be time to learn to make my own hummus. While it is relatively simple to find hummus in the local grocery store, I am never completely satisfied with the taste. That, the the mounting cost of buying premade items inspired my desire to embrace a DYI attitude when it comes to hummus.

As it turns out, making hummus is actually a no-brainer. I chose one of the many recipes for hummus on Martha's website, deciding to start with the basics: plain old Hummus Dip. In my brand new food processor, which has become a daily lifesaver, I combined a can of chickpeas, tahini, a clove of garlic, cumin, nutmeg and some water. For some extra flavor, I decided to add in some chives. This was particularly convenient because I have been looking for something to use them in.

After blending, I seasoned with a dash of salt. I served with whole wheat pita and baby carrots, a huge hit with the roommates and some friends that happened to be over.

The fact that I woke up this morning and all the hummus was gone speaks for its deliciousness. Someone in my apartment was late night eating last night....


Recipe (from Martha Stewart, http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/hummus-dip):

Ingredients

 Makes 1 3/4 cups

• 1 can (15 1/2 ounces) chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 1 small garlic clove, roughly chopped
• Pinch of ground cumin
• Pinch of ground nutmeg
• 1/4 cup tahini (sesame-seed paste)
• 1 tablespoon water, plus more as needed
• 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt

Directions

1. Puree all ingredients in a food processor until smooth and creamy, adding more water as needed to reach the desired consistency. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

Read more at Marthastewart.com: Hummus Dip - Martha Stewart Recipes

You say chickpea, I say garbanzo

Chickpeas aka garbanzo beans (and a few other aliases), have definitely never been on my list of food cravings. I guess it's because I just really don't like their texture - mushy but somehow grainy at the same time. And they always seem so bland! No matter what dressing I apply to them, they resist all attempts at flavoring.

But they're so good for you! How can I not eat them now?

Two cups of chickpeas contains a person's entire daily value of fiber, much of it insoluble fiber, which is excellent for digestion. They are also loaded with vitamins and nutrients - protein, folate, phosphorus, calcium, magnesium (which is emphasized on my pre-diabetic diet), iron and zinc. Suffice to say, chickpeas need to become my best friend.

I decided that a salad would provide an excellent reintroduction for me to garbanzos, my former enemy turned best friend. Martha had a fabulous Mediterranean Chickpea Salad that I knew would totally fit the bill.

Although Martha soaked and cured the garbanzos herself, I opted to buy them canned, a lazy-person's version of chickpeas. I combined these with generous portions of garlic, yellow pepper, cucumber, carrots, grape tomatoes, and chopped parsley. I also decided to add in some brown rice for a more filling salad and some spinach simply because I had some left over and I didn't want it to go bad. I finished the salad off with balsamic and olive oil, my favorite healthy, go to, dressing.

Will all the other ingredients, I hardly noticed that I was eating chickpeas. And I have to admit, I really love this salad. It is a perfect mix of crunchy and colorful! I made plenty of it and plan on eating this for lunch a few days this week.