Roasted chickpeas, especially when seasoned right, can make for an amazing crouton replacement for salads. They are loaded with fiber and can be much “cleaner” than the common bread croutons. Plus you can season them in so many different ways to create new flavors.
You gotta start somewhere
I remember making my first batch years ago (way before I quit corporate to leap into entrepreneurship). I thought it was such a daunting task. Soaking beans overnight, cooking beans (vs. using the canned version), then roasting them in the oven for almost an hour, seemed like such a process. But the end result was SO amazing. And now, soaking beans is easy!
Note: If you are new to this Wake the Wolves journey and our philosophy to preparing whole, real foods, know that you are not alone. What seems daunting, weird or new, eventually subsides the more you experiment. A great place to start figuring it all out is beautifully crammed into our Kale. All Day. Err Day. Book found here.
All about these roasted chickpeas
The process of roasting chickpeas (for a healthy snack) or crouton replacement salad topping starts with these basic steps:
- cook beans (or use canned)
- drain and toss with coconut oil and spices
- roast in the oven two times
- shake in a paper bag with more spices
- serve or store for later
Take a look. I made this as a crouton replacement for my latest fave – The Best Kale Caesar Salad – made vegan! Enjoy.
- 1 cup dried chickpeas/garbanzo beans (or buy 2 pre-cooked cans of garbanzo beans)
- water for boiling
- 1½ teaspoons cumin
- 1½ teaspoons paprika
- ½ teaspoon cayenne
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- juice from ½ lime
- juice from 1 lemon
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil, melted
- 1 paper bag (or jar)
Instructions
- If using dried chickpeas/garbanzo beans, soak them in water for about 5 hours or overnight. If using canned beans, drain and rinse them (and skip to step #3).
- Rinse and cover with fresh water to cook for about 30 minutes or until tender. Drain and set aside.
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
- Make the spice seasoning by mixing the cumin, paprika, cayenne, and sea salt in a small dish.
- In a medium bowl, toss the drained chickpeas/garbanzo beans with melted coconut oil and half of the spice mixture. Spread on a the lined cookie sheet and squeeze ½ of one lime and ½ of lemon over the beans.
- Roast for 40 minutes. Remove from the oven for 10 minutes to cool them down, then place them back in the oven for 10-15 more minutes until crunchy. (This is a great tip I’ve learned over the years and yes, it drastically helps the process to roast them twice.)
- Remove from the oven when crunchy and throw them in a paper bag with the remaining spice mixture and a few extra squeezes of lemon juice.
- Cool and store in a tightly sealed jar.
Notes
Use it for: a fiber-rich snack or a crunchy, crouton replacement topping for salads
Try these on top of this Kale Caesar Salad (made Vegan)
Kale. All Day. Err Day.
