3 Bean Escarole Soup with Garlic Oil & Homemade Croutons

Growing up my mom would make what my grandfather & father would call ’scroll & beans. For those not familiar with this language ‘scarole means escarole. If you’ve never had escarole I encourage you to try. It’s actually a lettuce but it tastes really good, almost sweet, when it’s cooked. I’ve always had it in chicken broth with canellini beans, grated cheese & crusty bread so when I found this recipe I channeled my youth & conjured up my take on this classic (to me) combination. I used three different kinds of beans because I didn’t have three cans of cannellini beans, so if you want to stick to one kind - go for it! You can skip the croutons & extra cheese if you like - but why would you want to do that? This is a quick & satisfying dinner especially while this weather continues to flirt with spring (it was 37 degrees yesterday & I think that’s pretty close to spring - today not so much.)

PS: For those observing Lent this will be a great meatless dish for your Friday dinner. Enjoy!

PPS: if you're gluten-free - skip my beloved croutons!

Simple Tapas: Spicy Baked Chickpeas

I love tapas for two reasons. One reason I love them is that they remind me of my first date with Chris. He took me to a great tapas restaurant. That was my last first date :) The other reason, which Chris didn’t know on our first date is that I love to taste different things. So I love ordering tapas. Granted there is a lot of work that usually goes into these tasty little dishes even if you’re just getting a taste. I found this quick & easy tapas dish for spicy baked chickpeas that from Claire Robinson’s 5 Ingredient Fix show (sigh I miss that show - so if you’re listening Food Network Gods please bring it back!). It’s a super easy snack to make & have on hand when guests come over for the holidays. Plus, this dish is primarily chickpeas so you can secretly provide some nutrition for your guests too!

Tangy Hot Chickpea Salad

Change up your salad routine with this hearty chickpea salad that's equal parts refreshing, healthy & hot! Simply combine all the ingredients in a large serving bowl.

Make it!
Mix the dressing ingredients together in a small bowl.  Toss it all together. This salad is great served right away & only gets better the longer it sits in the dressing & chills in the fridge. 

Ingredients:

• 2-8oz cans of chickpeas (rinse & drain)
• 1 jalapeno pepper (seed & dice)
• 1 cup baby spinach (chiffonade)
• 1 cup arugula (rough chop)
• 2 tomatoes (seed & chop)

Dressing:

• 1 tablespoon agave (or honey)
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 limes (juice & zest)
• 1 tablespoon hot pepper flakes