Homemade Roasted Chickpeas

As most of you know I am the salad queen and to keep my daily salad habit hopping I am always looking for new flavors and textures to keep my salad plates fresh! I picked a few bags of perorated seasoned chickpeas from a few different brands, but man they aren't cheap. So I decided a year or so ago to try a simple roasting recipe I found and I have never looked back. Not only are they amazing on salads, but they are great mixed into bowls or even as a pop-able snack when I'm feeling kinda munchy. I've altered the original recipe just a bit, but you can add your own twist as well per your taste buds! Sometimes I make these extra sticky, a little bit more crunchy, or spicy!

Nutrition Education:

Chickpeas by themselves or in hummus offer an awesome nutrition profile containing protein, manganese, folate, copper, phosphorous, iron, zinc, and provide dietary bioactives such as phytic acid, sterols, tannins, carotenoids, and other polyphenols such as isoflavones. So these legumes are a great way to step your nutrition game up! 

Okay, enough with my nutrition geek out, onto the recipe! 

Ingredients:

1 bag died chickpeas
3 tbsp avocado oil (you can use olive oil, coconut, etc...)
squeeze of lemon
paprika
garlic powder
onion powder
salt & pepper

How to:

1. Begin by soaking dried chickpeas overnight, you can skip this step if you buy the canned version.

2. After soaking overnight, allow chickpeas to drain in a colander. While they drain pre-heat oven to 405 degrees. 

3. Use a large baking sheet, line with parchment paper (hello easy clean-up), or spray with cooking spray and set aside.

4. Next, in a large mixing bowl add your chickpeas, oil of choice, and squeeze of lemon juice and toss till coated evenly with a baking spatula. 

5. Get to shaking! Select your favorite spices, I listed mine above that I use on essentially everything as a base when I roast.

6. Once chickpeas are dressed and seasoned throughly. Spread them evenly out on pan and place in the oven for 35-45 mins, depending on your crispy level- you want them to golden up but not turn black. 

7. Remove from oven & allow to cool. Store them in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to a week.

*NOTE: I've noticed that the dried chickpeas tend to be a bit larger in size compared to canned varieties so the cooking time may be a bit different using canned, so watch them and adjust as needed. 

I love how versatile chickpeas are, they can be added to essentially anything. I will share my homemade hummus recipe in an upcoming post next month! Bagged and canned veggies, legumes, and beans are just as healthy as fresh varieties and I always have some on hand when I need something in a pinch. They are such nutrition powerhouses! So why do I choose bagged over canned? I like to save my duckies and am very much so into being conscious of our environment, so I purchase many bagged beans and lentils and allow them to soak. There are also "quick soak" directions on the back of the bag where you use warm water and it takes less time. But if you are in a pinch, go with the canned version. 

This recipe is my basic base recipe for chickpeas that I like to use on salads and in bowl. However, sometimes I'll add cayenne pepper if I want them spicier or will add red hot into my mixture of oil. I have also added cinnamon, sugar, and kettle corn popcorn seasoning to make sweet chickpeas to make a healthier sweet tooth snack! If you're interested I will share that recipe as well, comment below!