Roasted Chickpeas

 It's been quite the fast-paced, exciting week.  First off, spring has managed to keep up the good fight and has refused to let winter return.  And seeing as tomorrow is the official start of spring, that means that we're done with snow for the year, right?  Don't answer that, I'm ok living in my ignorance.

Secondly, I've become an aunt!  And I couldn't be more excited.  My nephew was born on the ides of March, is a beautiful baby of 7 lbs 1 oz and officially, legally has the middle name "Danger".  I cannot wait to see who this kid turns out to be 7 years from now... I imagine many bruises and a few broken bones.

Lastly, on this brilliantly sunny and warm Sunday, I started an herb garden!  In the spirit of full disclosure,as of right now my herb garden consists of 3 pots of leafy green things that I luckily have not managed to kill yet.  But still, I'm excited.  I checked this morning and my cilantro, chives and mint are all still alive.  So far, so good.  I've always wanted a vast array of pots full of herbs, so this is especially exciting for me.  And as soon as I get more pots, I plan on expanding.  I'm thinking basil.  Thyme. Tarragon.

So, how does this all tie into roasted chickpeas?  Well, one, even though they are roasted, your oven is only on 20 or so minutes, so you're not heating up the entire apartment, which is great for 75 and sunny.  Two, maybe this is a good just-became-a-mommy snack, full of protein and easy to make.  Scratch the maybe, yes, and Katy, if you want some I will bring a jarful when I come to visit.  And finally, well, I'm just excited about my herbs in general.  Maybe the second round will have some fresh chives, or thyme.  I have to buy and plant thyme first though.  Baby steps with the herb garden.

 So, with all the stretching to make roasted chickpeas applicable in this rambling post, the truth is I've been seeing them on pinterest and tastespotting and I wanted to try them.  I was told they would taste like popcorn.  A myth that I am choosing to dispel right away.  These do not taste like popcorn.  The closet thing that resemble are Corn Nuts, although I won't be putting them on any Kwanzaa cakes anytime soon.  Ben wrote these off immediately.  I chomped a few, ate some sorbet, grabbed a few more.  I continued to reach for them sporadically throughout the weekend and just finished up the batch this morning.  It took me four days to form an opinion, but I would say I like them.  Especially when you intersperse the handfuls with a few dark chocolate M&M's, a combination I happily munched on all morning at work.  They're different and as long as you're not expecting them to taste like popcorn (see above), you just may enjoy them too, although it might take you 4 days to realize it.

Roasted Chickpeas
From Running to the Kitchen

As with roasted nuts, I would imagine these are infinitely adaptable to whatever spice combination tickles your fancy the most.  Try this.  Or try the recipe as is below, because they did smell absolutely WONDERFUL roasting up in the oven.  Like spicy apple pie.  Ok, maybe that doesn't sound good, but it sure smelled delicious.

1 can (15 oz) chickpeas
1 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
3/4 tsp. cumin
1/2 tsp. (heaping) paprika
3/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. coriander
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
1/4 tsp. kosher slat
1/8 tsp. (heaping) cayenne pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Line rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil or silicone baking mat.  If using foil, spray lightly with cooking spray.

Rinse chickpeas thoroughly and drain.  Turn into shallow dish and drizzle with olive oil.  Combine all spices and sprinkle over chickpeas.  Toss everything until coated evenly.  Transfer to prepared tray and spread out evenly.

Roast chickpeas in 400 degree oven for 20-30 minutes, tossing every 8-12 minutes, so chickpeas roast evenly.  Let cool on pan and serve!  For any remaining chickpeas, keep in airtight container for 3-4 days (that's as long as mine lasted!)