Best Spanish Style Chickpeas And Escarole Recipes

CHICKPEA AND ESCAROLE SOUP

Steps:

• Roughly chop the escarole and place in a large bowl. Cover with cold water. Set aside.
• In a large pot, heat the oil over high heat. Add the onion. Season with a pinch of salt. Stir to distribute. Cover. Immediately turn heat to low. Cook for 15 minutes or until onions are translucent and beginning to take on some color.
• Remove the lid from the pot, and add the escarole, scooping it from the bowl of water with your hands, leaving the water behind - some water clinging to the greens is fine. Let the escarole cook for a minute undisturbed, then use tongs to stir and encourage it to wilt down, which will happen quickly, 1-2 minutes.
• Add the chickpeas and their cooking liquid - if you are using the slow cooker chickpea recipe, you can dump the entire contents of the slow cooker into the pot (remove the onion half and bay leaf first). This is roughly 6 heaping cups of chickpeas and 4 cups of cooking liquid. Add 4 more cups of water. Add the parmesan rind if using. Season with freshly cracked pepper. Let simmer 25-30 minutes or until the broth, chickpeas and escarole taste nicely seasoned. Taste for salt. If you are using the slow cooker chickpeas, whose broth is nicely seasoned, plus a parmesan rind, you likely won't need to add more salt. But if not, add salt to taste.
• To make the crusty bread, heat a large skillet over medium heat with some olive oil. Cook slices of bread on one side until golden. Flip, and cook the other side till crisp and golden.
• Ladle soup into bowls. Dunk in a slice of olive oil toasted bread. Crack pepper over top. Shave parmesan over top if you wish.

SPANISH CAESAR WITH CHICKPEA CROUTONS

Steps:

• Put the eggs, garlic, cilantro, green onions, salt, cumin, lime zest and juice, anchovy, Worcestershire, Dijon, and jalapeno into the carafe of a blender and puree until smooth. With the motor running, slowly drizzle the olive oil into the top of the carafe until the mixture thickens. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
• Arrange the romaine on a platter and drizzle the sauce over the top. Garnish with the jack cheese and the croutons.
• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
• Drain, rinse and lightly pat dry the chickpeas. Spread out on a baking sheet and pick over the peas, discarding small or damaged peas. Combine the oil and spices in a small bowl and add to the chickpeas. Toss well until evenly coated. Evenly spread out the chickpeas on the baking sheet and put in the oven. Bake for 10 minutes, then stir and bake for another 10 minutes. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and sprinkle with a pinch of sea salt. Drizzle with the lime juice and set aside to cool and dry. Use as desired.

PASTA WITH ESCAROLE AND CHICKPEAS

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Meanwhile, heat 3 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and cook 30 seconds, then stir in the escarole, chickpeas, 1/4 teaspoon salt and the red pepper flakes; cover and cook until the escarole wilts, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook as the label directs. After a few minutes, remove 1 1/2 cups of the pasta cooking water and add to the skillet with the escarole mixture; simmer, uncovered, until the liquid is reduced by half and the escarole is tender, about 5 minutes. When the pasta is done, reserve 1 cup cooking water, then drain. Add the pasta to the skillet and cook, tossing to combine, 1 minute; add some of the reserved cooking water if the pasta seems dry. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil and toss. Remove from the heat and stir in the cheese.

WHOLE-GRAIN PASTA WITH CHICKPEAS AND ESCAROLE

Steps:

• Cook the pasta according to the package directions; add the escarole during the last 2 minutes, cover and do not stir. Remove the escarole with tongs; set aside. Drain the pasta, reserving 1/2 cup cooking liquid. Meanwhile, if you're using capers, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the capers and fry until crisp, about 2 minutes. Transfer to a paper-towel-lined plate.
• Add the remaining 3 tablespoons oil to the skillet. Cook the garlic, parsley and red pepper flakes until the garlic toasts slightly, 1 minute. Add the tomatoes, chickpeas, a pinch of salt and the bay leaves. Cook until the tomatoes and chickpeas brown, about 6 minutes. Add the escarole and reserved tomato juice and cook until the sauce thickens slightly, about 4 more minutes. Remove and discard the bay leaves.
• Add the cooked pasta to the skillet and toss with the sauce; season with salt and pepper. (If the sauce is thick, add some reserved pasta water.) Stir in the cheese and top with fried capers, if using, and more cheese.