Snacks that are fun to eat, yummy, portable, and healthy are somewhat hard to find. If you want the snack to appeal to both kids and adults, the list grows even shorter. Roasted chickpeas however, fit those requirements perfectly. Chickpeas are a nutritious whole food with good amounts of protein, fiber, complex carbohydrates, and when tossed with avocado oil as you do in this recipe, monounsaturated fat.
You can easily tailor the end product dozens of different ways, depending on how you season them after roasting. If you have children, having them toss their chickpeas in the seasoning of their choice is an easy way to get them involved in the cooking process, without it turning into an all-day, messy affair. Everyone loves a customized snack.For the recipe below, you can use either canned or dried and soaked chickpeas. Up to this point in life, I’ve always used canned beans because I’m not generally proactive with meal planning — I like determining meals the day of, based on how I’m feeling and what sounds delicious and nourishing. Soaking beans 24 hours ahead hasn’t worked well for the way I prefer to prepare meals. However, for this recipe soaking is a great option, because unlike a meal, snacks are less time-sensitive. You can plan to make them on a day you know you’ll have time. I made the last batch on a Sunday afternoon, which gave us great munchies for the coming work-week.
Once you’ve baked the chickpeas, you can toss them in just about any type of spice combination. In addition to snacks, I also love them as an alternative to croutons on salads. Although they lose some crunch after the first day, they do store well in a sealed container at room temperature for up to a week.
Here are a few topping suggestions:
- Ella’s (my daughter) favorite: 1 cup roasted chickpeas tossed with: 1 tsp avocado oil, 1/4 tsp salt, 1 Tbl parmesan cheese, fresh pepper
- 1 cup roasted chickpeas tossed with: 1 tsp avocado oil, 1/4 tsp salt, 1 tsp nutritional yeast, fresh pepper
- 1 cup roasted chickpeas tossed with:1 tsp avocado oil, 1/4 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp garlic powder, 1/2 tsp onion powder, fresh pepper
- My two favorites:
- 1 cup roasted chickpeas tossed with: 1 tsp avocado oil, 1/4 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp lemon curry powder
- 1 cup roasted chickpeas tossed with: 1 tsp avocado oil, 1/4 tsp salt, 1 tsp dukkah (I use dukkah made by a restaurant here in Missoula: Dukkah Egyptian Spice Blend from The Silk Road Restaurant)
- 1.5 - 2 cups chickpeas (a standard can will yield 1.5 cups, while the soaked method below will yield 2 cups)
- 1.5 - 2 Tbl avocado oil
- salt and pepper to taste
- If you use canned chickpeas, chose a low-sodium, BPA-free brand (the lining of many canned products contains BPA, but some brands are making BPA-free versions, so try to find those if you can).
- If you use dried chickpeas, measure 1 cup of dried chickpeas and place them in a large bowl with 3 cups of water. Let the chickpeas soak at room temperature for 24 hours. 1 cup of dried chickpeas will yield 2 cups of rehydrated peas.
- After soaking (or opening a can) the chickpeas, drain and rinse them.
- Pre-heat the oven to 450° F.
- Once chickpeas are drained and rinsed, toss them with the avocado oil. Using avocado oil for this recipe is important, because it can withstand the high roasting temperature. Other oils (olive, coconut, etc. do not hold up as well).
- If you desire, toss the chickpeas in a little salt and pepper after coating with avocado oil.
- Spread chickpeas evenly onto a baking pan and place on a middle rack in the oven.
- Bake at 450°F for between 25-35 minutes. Halfway through the cooking time, give the pan a good shake to rotate the chickpeas and ensure even cooking. Be careful to watch them closely for the last 5-10 minutes to ensure they do not burn. The chickpeas should be browned, with some darker brown patches.
- Pull the chickpeas out of the oven and place into a bowl. Let them cool for a few minutes and then toss with your desired toppings!
*Not all calories are equal.