Roasted Spiced Chickpeas + 3 Reasons Why You Should Eat Pulses
In honor of today, Global Pulse Day, I'm chatting about one of the hottest (and most nutritious) food trends: Pulses!
First of all you might be wondering, "what's a pulse"? You are probably more familiar with pulses than you think! Pulses are a type of crop harvested for the edible dry seed. The most common pulses are dried beans, dried peas and dried lentils. So, if you eat black beans, chickpeas, kidney beans, red lentils or black eyed peas, you eat pulses.
Although people around the world have eaten pulses for hundreds of years, these little loves are finally getting the recognition they deserve. Since pulses are versatile in cooking and food preparation, you can now find pulses in a variety of products. A few of my favorite go-to's are pulse pasta, pulse snacks, and pulse flour.
3 Reasons Why You Should Eat Pulses:
Pulses are packed with nutrition
Noteworthy nutrients: fiber, protein and healthy carbohydrates which all keep you feeling fuller longer. Research shows that including pulses regularly in the diet can help improve blood sugar regulation, and support weight loss.
Pulses are cheap
Depending on where you shop canned beans range from $.79 to $1.25 per can and dried pulses range from $1.99-$2.99 per pound.
Pulses are sustainable
These crops actually help to improve soil health and require less pesticides and water than other crops.
Today’s recipe features chickpeas that are tossed with vibrant, savory spices and roasted in the oven until crunchy. I love these to crunch on as a protein-rich snack, tossed on a salad or use as a garnish in soup.
Here are a few more pulse recipes to get you started:
Do you eat pulses? What’s your favorite? Tell me in the comments!
Roasted Spiced Chickpeas
Active Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 55 Minutes
Ingredients:
2-15 ounce cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
2 teaspoons olive oil
Spice Blend:
½ teaspoon turmeric powder
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon garlic powder
¼ teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
½ teaspoon salt
Instructions:
Pre-heat the oven to 375.
Drain and rinse the chickpeas and let water drain off.
Prepare the spice blend by measuring and mixing all the spices together in a small dish.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Transfer chickpeas to baking sheet and toss with olive oil.
Toss with spice blend (be careful since turmeric stains).
Bake for 45 minutes until the chickpeas are firm and chunky. Let cool, and store in an air-tight container.
