Lately I’ve been looking for ways to both cook healthy, and cook cheap, and this is the perfect solution to both. All I didn’t have in the fridge for this Kale and Chickpea Saute was the kale! Plus, kale is a favorite food in this house, so I’m going to ride the kale wave as far as I can.
Apparently I forgot to take pictures of this dish in progress, but that’s probably because it is so simple that no real explanation is needed! Sautee the garlic and shallots (finally, I’m using shallots in a recipe that actually calls for them!), then add the chickpeas until they get browned and crispy, add the red pepper and kale until it wilts down, and zest and juice the lemon over the top!
A few stray observations: My chickpeas never got browned or crispy, really, at least not as much as I was hoping. I’m pretty sure this is because I had a really heavy hand with olive oil at the beginning, and also because I kept changing the temperature on the burner, since I didn’t want the garlic and shallots to burn. Next time, I’d use less oil (I’d just use the recommended amount of oil!), and keep the heat constant. Next time, I’m also going to double the recipe! Since it’s probably meant to be a side dish (my partner mentioned how good it would be with steak…), there was just enough for both of us – we probably both could have eaten more! I wish I had some for lunch today, too. But I served it with freshly-baked Honey Beer Bread (recipe coming soon!), and it was a really filling, satisfying pantry-clearing meal.
Kale and Chickpea Saute (Originally from Live To Eat)
1 can chickpeas
1 bunch Kale
1/4 cup thinly sliced shallots
6 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
Red pepper flakes to taste
salt to taste
1 tbsp Olive oil
Juice and zest of 1 lemon (I used the zest of the whole lemon and juice from half, because I had a particularly juicy lemon)
Drain and rinse the chickpeas. In a large non-stick pan, heat the olive oil and saute the shallots and garlic till soft. Add salt and the chickpeas and saute till the chickpeas turn golden and crusty, about 8-10 minutes. Add the red pepper and mix well. Add the kale and saute for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and add the lemon zest and lemon juice and mix well. Season with more salt if needed. Serve warm or at room temperature.
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