Meat Free Monday – Chickpea stew

Last night we had this Chickpea Stew I found on Epicurious.  It was lovely last night and absolutely delicious for lunch today!

As usual I did mostly what the recipe asked for.  This means I read the recipe, it looks good and I make a note of what to grab on the way home.  I then usually either forget half the stuff I was meant to get or they didn’t have it at the shop.  Yesterday I got lucky…

The recipe suggests serving with couscous, but we had roast potatoes and salad and it was yum.

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 cup diced red onion

2 tablespoons finely minced garlic

1 teaspoon ground cumin

2 cans chickpeas, rinsed and drained

1 can plum tomatoes, chopped, with their juices

4 sprigs fresh thyme or 1 teaspoon dried thyme

1 teaspoon honey

1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

1 can water

1 teaspoon vegetable stock

Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1/2 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley

 

1. Place the olive oil in a heavy saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the onion; stirring occasionally, cook until wilted, about 12 minutes. Add the garlic during the last 2 minutes. Stir in the cumin and cook 2 minutes more to mellow the flavors.

2. Add the chickpeas, the tomatoes with their juices, thyme, honey, lemon juice, water, stock, salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, for 15 to 20 minutes. Adjust the seasonings and stir in the parsley.

3. To serve, spoon couscous (if desired) into 4 shallow bowls and top with the stew. Serve immediately.

Enjoy!