chickpea bajane

ok. so this was a hit in our house. chickpea bajane is close to being 'comfort food', but not quite heavy enough to be (it's lacking dairy, which i think is a key ingredient for 'comfort food'). in any event, it's a solid meal for a cool night. although bajane means 'midday meal' in provence, where chickpeas are something akin to a staple food item. so, why not try it midday? we did, for leftovers.

chickpea bajane

quinoa:                   

2 tsp olive oil

2 garlic clove

1 c vegetable broth

1 c uncooked quinoa

1 1/2 tsp fresh thyme

salt

     heat oil at med heat, add garlic,  then broth, quinoa, and seasonings. cover, reduce heat and simmer for about 15 min.

chickpea mix-up:

2 tsp oil

2 c leek

4 garlic cloves

2 1/2 c sliced fennel*

1/2 c white wine*

1 c veg broth

4 tsp fresh thyme

15 oz of chickpeas

1 tbs lemon juice

1 1/2 c of spinach**

salt and pepper

* didn't use this, i used celery and apple cider vinegar, respectively. our fennel bolted and our wine was drunk. you might also add in sliced carrots and fennel seeds, for some color.

** used about 3 c of spinach, but i also nearly doubled the recipe....

    for the chickpea mixture, heat oil on med heat. add leek and garlic, saute until tender.make sure all vegetables become golden. add wine until liquid nearly evaporates. stir in broth, thyme and chickpeas and cook until tender. remove from heat, stir in lemon juice, s+p and spinach.

you can either place the quinoa mix in a bowl and cover with the chickpea mixture for each individual serving, or go crazy and mix it all up.

we didn't use the wine, but i think we should have. i added extra spinach, and some celery. the whole thing was very tasty, it could have used some orange juice, i think, though. or something tangy. also, could use couscous instead of quinoa, but you'd miss out on all that protein.
anyways, it's a good garden recipe, even though the most of our chickpeas were eaten, much of our fennel bolted, and our spring spinach did poorly. you could throw in just about any veg and it would taste good.  enjoy!