Chickpea Burgers

My friend Lauren made these chickpea burgers recently and they were so good that I wanted to make them myself. They're good to have on hand for lunch or dinner.

These have spices in them that give them an Indian style kick. They taste great with some toppings: tomatoes, feta, tzatziki and cucumbers - and are good in pitas.

Chickpea Burgers

Ingredients

2 15oz cans chickpeas
4 eggs
1 medium onion, chopped
1 lemon, zested and juiced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon olive oil (for onions, plus more to fry burgers)
1 cup bread crumbs (I used panko)
1/4 cup rolled outs
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper (or 1 teaspoon for an extra kick)
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped

1. Drain chickpeas and add them to a food processor with the eggs. Pulse to combine, but don't puree - let the mixture remain a little chunky.

2.  Sauté the chopped onion in olive oil over medium-high heat until softened, about 2 minutes. Add the garlic and spices and mix together well, cooking for about another minute.

3. Let the spice mixture cool briefly, then add to the chickpea/egg mixture. Stir in the lemon zest and juice, oats, bread crumbs and parsley. Let the mixture stand for about 10-15 minutes.

4. Form the mix into 10-12 "burger" patties.  Cook in olive oil over medium heat for about 3-4 minutes per side until cooked through.

Patties: 

I love those sandwich thins:

Pasta with Roasted Cauliflower, Chickpeas, and Ricotta

This recipe was easy, and a win, as is. I'd recommend either making your own ricotta (which I did not do) or getting a good ricotta. I used Organic Valley's. I don't think I can go for Polly-O anymore after that. Making it is the next step, but I've heard that once you start making ricotta, it's hard to stop eating it.

Pasta with Roasted Cauliflower, Chickpeas, and Ricotta
From: Serious Eats

Ingredients
1 pound pasta shells
1 head cauliflower, cut into florets
1 can chickpeas (15 oz)
2 cups cubed crusty bread
1/4 cup olive oil
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
Salt and pepper to taste

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. In a bag, toss cauliflower and chickpeas with half of the olive oil (add a little more if it looks dry) and 1 teaspoon of salt. Spread the mix onto a baking sheet in a single layer and roast for 25-35 minutes, when the chickpeas turn golden. Turn everything over once halfway through cooking.

2. Place the bread cubes on another baking sheet and bake in the oven for about 10 minutes, until the bread is crispy but not burning. (You can put these in during the last 10 minutes that the cauliflower mixture is cooking).

3. Meanwhile, bring water to a boil and cook pasta according to directions. Reserve 1/4 cup pasta water when draining.

4. To the pasta, add the remaining olive oil, the cauliflower mixture, and a little pasta water. Add croutons and parsley and season with salt and pepper. Top each serving with some ricotta cheese.