Tidings of Comfort and Joy
There are two ways to go with holiday meals. Go all out with something new that you’ve been waiting for the perfect occasion to serve. Or, serve family favorites that bring comfort and joy to all. This year it’s all about comfort and joy. We’ll dine on Roasted Garbanzos w/ Greens, Tomatoes & Garlic, one of 
our very favorite vegetarian/vegan entrées. For a long time we ate this dish at least once a week. So now just the fragrance of the roasting garbanzos increases our anticipation and soothes our souls.
I came upon the original recipe that inspired my version a few years ago. It was part of an advertisement on a back page of a Saveur Magazine featuring Greek-American Chef Michael Psilakis. I was intrigued. I had never heard of roasting garbanzos—what a delight for the taste buds. The consistency of the garbanzos becomes almost “meaty” and their flavor much richer.
Doing it my way
Per usual, I’ve adapted this recipe over the years. Not only refining the cooking technique, but also by adding fresh, ripe tomatoes, replacing the shallots with leeks and green onions and simply sautéing the greens. Gorgeous colors, complex flavors and a variety of textures from soft vegetables to chewy garbanzos. On an inspiration, I once paired the Roasted Garbanzos with a dish of Cucumbers in Yogurt—and now consider them an integral part of the meal. The cooling, creamy cucumbers provide a wonderful contrast in both color and texture.
God Bless Us, Every One
We saw an excellent local performance of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol the other night. Tiny Tim’s final “God Bless Us, Every One” rang sweet and clear.
May you, each one, enjoy a most blessed holiday of deep peace, comfort and joy.
Roasted Garbanzos w/ Greens, Tomatoes & Garlic
Inspired by and adapted from a recipe from Greek Chef Michael Psilakis.
Swiss Chard, beet greens or any variety of kale are all great in this recipe. I’ve also substituted a thinly-sliced half an onion for the sliced leek and green onion.
Leftovers, served cold make a most delicious lunch the next day.
Makes 4 servings as an entrée Printer-Friendly Recipes
Active time: 30 minutes
Total time: 1 hour 15 minutes
Ingredients
3 cups cooked garbanzo beans (if using canned, drain before using)
6 medium garlic cloves, peeled and halved lengthwise
2 cups sliced leek, white and light green parts
3 green onions, thinly sliced
1 cup diced tomatoes
2 large bay leaves
1½ teaspoons fennel seeds
½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
Few twists freshly ground black pepper
1 large bunch Tuscan Kale, Swiss chard or other greens, stemmed. Stems sliced ¼ inch thick and leaves cut into 2-inch wide strips.
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Serve garnished with a couple of spoonfuls of Cucumbers in Yogurt (recipe below)
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 425 degrees.
Mix together the garbanzos, garlic, leek, green onions, tomatoes, bay leaves, fennel seeds and ½ cup olive oil in an 8 x 11–inch ceramic baking dish.- Cover the pan tightly with foil. Bake for 30 minutes.
- Prepare the Cucumbers in Yogurt. Toss the cucumbers and green onions with the seasoned rice vinegar. Let the mixture sit for at least 30 minutes. (See the recipe below)
- Remove the roasted garbanzos from the oven and reduce the heat to 375 degrees. Remove the foil. Toss the garbanzo mixture and return it to the oven, uncovered, for another 15 minutes. Turn off the heat. Leave the roasted garbanzos in the oven while you sauté the greens.
Heat the 2 tablespoons oil in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add the stem pieces and cook for 1 minute. Add the leaves and sprinkle lightly with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Add 2/3 cup of water. Cover the pan and cook for about 9-10 minutes until the Tuscan Kale is tender and the water has evaporated. Turn off the heat.- While the kale is cooking, stir the yogurt and cilantro into the yogurt.
When the kale is cooked, remove the roasted garbanzos from the oven. Remove the bay leaves and stir the mixture into the kale. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste. Serve hot, or at room temperature with the Cucumbers in Yogurt.- Note: If you use Swiss chard, use only 2 tablespoons of water. With other varieties of kale, start with 1 cup of water. They may take 15 or more minutes to soften.
Cucumbers in Yogurt
A cool and creamy complement to the Roasted Garbanzos in both color and texture.
Makes 3-4 cups Printer-Friendly Recipes
Active time: 5 minutes
Total time: 35 minutes
Ingredients
1 cucumber
1 green onion
2 tablespoons lite seasoned rice vinegar
1 cup plain, whole milk yogurt
1 handful fresh cilantro (optional), coarsely chopped
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Instructions
- Peel the cucumber but leave some strips of the peel in place. Halve and quarter the cucumber lengthwise. Cut into ¼ inch thick slices. Put the cucumber slices in a bowl.
Very thinly slice the green onion. Add the slices to the cucumber. Toss with the seasoned rice vinegar. Set aside to marinate at least 30 minutes.- Stir in the yogurt and coarsely chopped cilantro if using it. Adjust the salt and pepper to taste.
I was looking forward to making this recipe, but by the time I got around to it I found I was out of tomatoes and greens. No problem. I substituted sweet orange peppers in place of tomatoes roasting them as well. Since the greens were absent I decide to put the roasted mixture into the food processor and created a very hearty dip with rosemary crackers. It was a big hit at the potluck. I was glad to have the last minute inspiration. Thanks Janice.
This is so creative, Nancy. I would never have thought of blending it in the food processor and actually making hummus from the roasted garbanzos. And with the sweet peppers, oh my. Looking forward to making it this way myself. Thank you for sharing your inspiration.
The fact that I can see the garlic already endears me to this recipe (we are a garlic crazy family). I still have not tried roasted garbanzo beans even thought I’ve heard about how good they are. I’ll have to add it to my list of things to cook for 2013.
Not only see, but also taste the garlic. And, go ahead and add even more 😉
So yummy. I just want to sit in the picture. Your photographs are simply amazing. So vivid and sharp. Love it.
Thank you, Ute, I so appreciate your comments.