A simple high protein and relatively healthy snack. They are good for that mid morning or afternoon slump at work when you want to reach for the chocolate and are delicious with a glass of wine before supper.
(front paprika flavour, rear curry flavour)
1 can of chickpeas – rinsed and drained
Olive Oil
Flavourings – powdered paprika, curry powder etc.
Salt & Pepper
Pre heat oven to GM1 / 140C
Pour a good glug of olive oil into a small pan and add a couple (to taste) of teaspoons of flavouring, heat stirring all the time until oil is hot and the spices are smelling strongly.
Add and stir in the chick peas until they are coated.
Pour coated chickpeas into a baking tray and put in oven.
Take the tray out and give a good shake every 15 mins to prevent peas sticking.
They are done when they are crunchy all the way through, the texture would have completely changed and they would have shrunk but about a third. Cooking times vary but will be between 1 to 1 ½ hours depending on size of chickpeas.
Do check them regularly as they go from slightly underdone to burnt with alarming rapidity.
Cool on a sheet of kitchen paper to absorb any excess oil and store in an airtight container when cool. They should keep at least a couple of weeks.
Variations
I have a pot of powdered dried sun dried tomatoes that I want to use.
Wasabi powder would be lovely – I shall go and but some from the Japan Centre which has a wonderful supermarket in the basement and the best and cheapest sushi in London – I tried using wasabi paste but it would not mix in the oil.
Roasted pumpkin and squash seeds are delicious cooked the same way, it seems such a shame to through them away when cooking squashes etc. I read somewhere that pumpkin seeds are meant to act as an appetite suppressant, which is an added bonus for a healthy snack!
