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chickpeas

Super Easy Saucy Hoisin Chickpea and Quinoa Bowl

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Bowls really have been the greatest invention ever. You can just take one, take your favorite ingredients, throw it all in, mix it and enjoy it. This is pure genius. Endless options and possibilities. And that can also be challenging, because how do you make a good bowl? This bowl definitely is a good one! Tangy and slightly sweet hoisin chickpeas with fluffy quinoa, crunchy veggies and soft avocado. = heaven.

How to make a good bowl?

A bowl always comes together out of several different ingredient groups. We have grains, greens, protein, veggies, fruits (optional), sauce and a topping. When we add something out of every group, we have got a perfectly balanced, healthy and delicious bowl

What’s special about this dish?

It is a bowl like no other – that is what is so great about bowls – everyone is so different. This is kind of an asian inspired bowl with flavours from China because of the hoisin. And since it is veganuary (and a lot of people are doing veganuary) we are making a vegan bowl – and no it is not boring! It is super flavourful, easy to make and packed with nutrients!

Is this dish healthy?

Definitely! You have got a very well balanced dish! As a base we have a mix of quinoa, which is packed with fibre, carbohydrates and protein, and greens, which are loaded with vitamins & nutrients. Then we have the star of the show: the chickpeas. Chickpeas are not only delicious, but also high in fibre and protein and a great source of plant based protein.

The sauce, in which the chickpeas are in, is made out of soy sauce, honey or maple, ginger and garlic and peanut butter, which provides some more protein and healthy fats. And then we also have the fresh veggies, which are very important for us with their nutrients and of course, some avocado (a bowl without avocado just wouldn’t be a bowl). Extra healthy fats and nutrients. As a topping we have spring onions and radishes, which add some more crunch and nutrients.

How to make this dish?

Really really simple. We start by preparing the quinoa (which by the way is the food of the month and you can read more about it here). Then we make the sauce for the chickpeas by blending peanut butter, soy sauce, ginger, lime juice, miso paste, honey and cornstarch

Now we are going to cook the chickpeas and the veggies. The veggies in boiling, salted water and the chickpeas with the sauce in a pan. The sauce will thicken and the chickpeas will absorb the flavour.

To assemble we now just add everything to a bowl, along with the avocado and tomatoes and top it with radishes and spring onions. That already is it!

Meal prep friendly?

Yes it definitely is, I have already had it reheated and it was at least as delicious! Just do not reheat the spring onions, tomatoes, radishes and avocado since they are meant to be eaten raw. And maybe you’ll need to add a splash of water to the chickpeas to thin out the sauce a bit!

I hope you’ll enjoy this bowl at least as much as I do, that you’ll have a fun time cooking and a healthy January!

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Super Easy Saucy Hoisin Chickpea and Quinoa Bowl

A delicious, easy & healthy (vegan) bowl recipe that is packed with a tangy, slightly sweet sauce, many fresh and crunchy veggies and fluffy, soft quinoa!

Course bowl, Main Course
Cuisine asian
Prep Time 5 Minuten
Cook Time 10 Minuten
Total Time 15 Minuten
Servings 2 servings
Calories 577 kcal

What you will need

For the chickpeas:

  • 1 can chickpeas
  • 1 tbsp peanut butter
  • 4 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1/2 lime
  • 1 tbsp honey or maple syrup
  • 2 garlic cloves
  • 1 thumb sized piece of ginger
  • 1 tsp cornstarch
  • 1/2 tsp chili paste (optional)

For the rest:

  • 120 g quinoa
  • 1 small head broccoli
  • 100 g edamame beans
  • 1 handful cherry tomatoes
  • 2 stalks spring onions
  • 100 g radishes
  • 1 avocado

How to

  1. To a pot add the quinoa, with a pinch of salt, and twice the amount of water. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Let simmer on medium-low heat until all water in absorbed. Then turn down to low heat and let the quinoa fluff.

  2. In the meantime peel the ginger and garlic, juice the lime and blend them along with all the otehr ingredients for the chickpeas, except the chickpeas themselves. If you do not have a blender, finely grate the garlic and ginger and just stir to combine the other ingredients for the sauce. Add it to a pot along with the drained and washed chickpeas and bring to a boil. Then reduce to a simmer and let it thicken a bit, about 5-8 minutes.

  3. In the meantime bring another pot of water to a boil and cook the broccoli and edmame in it for about 4 minutes, then drain.

  4. Half the cherry tomatoes, finely slice up the spring onions and half and depit the avocado.

  5. Once everything is ready, add it to a bowl and enjoy!

Love,
Katie // Une Petite Cuisinière

Honey Eggplant and chickpea salad with grilled halloumi

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Sounds like a lot and it is. So many flavors, so much goodness but still so simple and quick. Leave the boring salads behind and start making those next level ones. Salads have never tasted that good! 

Sunmer ist getting closer and closer, which means many people try to live and eat healthier. And whats the stereotype thing to do in order to eat healthiet? Salads! But contrary to commin believes, the plain ones only containing leaves and a dressing, maybe a piece of chicken, are bot the healthiest ones! 

Why are conventional salads not necessarily healthy?

Because they will fill you up for an hour maximum and wont leave you satisfied! Whats the problem with that? If you are not filled and satisfied for long, you will start to get hungry again very soon and snack or binge eat on unhealthy things as you will develop cravings for that. In order to bot develop these, it is important to have a filling, nutritious and delicious meal. And I know that this can be difficult with salads but believe me, this one is everything else than boring. 

Whats in it?

You bake the chickpeas and eggplant in the oven, with a slight olive oil and honey drizzle to get them crispy and a bit sweet. Honestly, life changing! If you habe never done chickpeas or eggplant with honey, I‘d say you should head straight to the kitchen and get started! And its so simple! You place the main components of the salad in the oven for 20 minutes and you are already half way there. 

The most extra dressing

The remaining base of the salad is some basic spinach. Bot a lot, just to add some color and vitamins! But whats a salad without a dressing? My brother would say rabbit food! And he is right. It is boring and plain. I do not get those people who skip on salad dressings because they literally are the easiest thing ever and add a ton of flavor. Honestly, don‘t skip on that. In here we have a super extra, still super simple dressing. 3 ingredients (!!) so much flavor! The ingredients are purred tomatoes (the ones from the can or box), Tahini and lemon juice. I do not know why I have never thought of making dressing with tomato sauce before but it is good. I wouldn‘t do it with a green side salad but on top of buddha bowls or italian inspired ones or ones that are pretty extra, as this one, this is so good! Highly recommended!

The star of the show

Last but definitely not least, the grilled halloumni. I have never had halloumni up till a few months ago and from then on it is a must in my diet! So addictingly good. On salads, on bowls, on pasta, on everything. It really adds this last pinch of salt to anything. Like here. It adds the extra wow, the saltiness and satisfying touch. We essentially only need to grill it for a few minutes on each side and thats it! Assemble! You can serve it with some bread, although I believe that this is not necessary because it is amazing and filling as is! 

You can meal prep it, just leave the dressing extra and keep in mind that the halloumni won’t be as melty and good but it still tastes pretty solid. My recommendation: make it fresh, it is better.

I hope that you will like this recipe and that it will change up your regular salad routine a little! 

Enjoy,

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Honey Eggplant and Chickpea Salad with grilled Halloumi

Next level salad. Has nothing to do with the boring image of salads you have in your head. Sweet and tangy eggplant & chickpeas, combined with salty fried halloumi and the most extra dressing. Enjoy now & Thank me later!

Course Appetizer, bowl, lunch, Salad
Prep Time 5 Minuten
Cook Time 20 Minuten
Total Time 25 Minuten
Servings 4 servings
Calories 366 kcal

What you will need

  • 2 large handful spinach
  • 160 g chickpeas from the can, rinsed, drained, and pat dry
  • 1 eggplant
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tbsp honey
  • some salt & pepper
  • 200 g halloumi
  • 1/2 lemon juiced

For the dressing:

  • 2 tbsp Olive Oil (just pured tomatoes from the can/ boy without anything)
  • 1 tbsp Tahini
  • 1 lemon juiced

How to

That is how it works:

  1. Slice the eggplant into about 2 cm sized cubes. Drain, rinse and pat the chickpeas dry. Place both in a bowl. In a seperate bowl combie the olive oil, lemon juice and honey. Generously salt and pepper the eggplant and chickpeas and then toss in the dressing. Bake for abou 20 minutes at 180°C.

  2. Meanwhile combine all the ingredients for the dressing.

    Heat up a grilling pan to high heat. Slice up the halloumi in about 0.5 cm thick slices. Just before the chickpeas are done baking, fry the halloumi on it for about 2-3 minutes on each side until it gets some grilling marks and melts nicely.

  3. When the tray is done baking, combine the ingredients with the spinach and the dressing. Seperate on bowls and top with the grilled halloumi!

    Serve and enjoy!

Katie // Une Petite Cuisinière

Vegan Kale Ceasar Salad

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Summer is (luckily) getting closer and closer, which means so do salads for summer bodies. But please, it shouldn’t be about the way you look but the way you feel! For me plantbased or veggie heavy dishes always make me feel the best, give me tons of vitamins, a lot of energy, make my sleep be that best it could possibly be and just shine grin the inside and out. 

But I know for a lot of people when they read „salad“ they either think of rabbit food (as my brother likes to say :)) or some green leaves underneath a ton of dressing. So today, we are doing none of those. Neither super boring and leaving us hungry, nor drenched in a fat heavy dressing. No. We a re doing a super delicious vegan and healthy version of the super popular ceasar salad. Still a little cheesy, with self dried tomatoes (best thing ever!) and crispy pan fried rosemary chickpeas. Sounds like a pretty solid dish to me and it definitely is! 

Why Kale?

That’s super simple: to switch things up. As good as Romain lettuce is sometimes, it is good to change things every now and then. And kale is a true superfood. Super high in fiber, minerals, vitamins, iron, antioxidants, and all of that other healthy stuff. And no, it’s not the raw one that is hard to chew but we are steaming it so it is softer, easier to digest and tastier. I know that there are a lot of people that absolutely can’t stand kale at all, no matter in which form, then I would recommend using spinach or lambs lettuce as this would work best for this. Also a mix with arugula would be great!

What else?

That’s a good question. Where to start? The oven roasted tomatoes, the incredible dressing, the crispy chickpeas or the croutons? 
One after the other. So what else is super typical for ceasar salad are the croutons. No normal croutons here but whole wheat garlic ones. You heard me right. A little healthier but so good! Pan fried with fresh garlic and a little olive oil, it’s the best add in (to any salad actually).

Homemade dried tomatoes

Next up; oven roasted tomatoes. If you have never made this before, you sure missed out on something and spent way too much money on store bought ones before. It is essentially 3 steps: cut the tomatoes, place them in the oven, take them out. Oh, yeah and eat them of course! That’s how easy it is. You just leave them in the oven for an hour and go take a bath in the meantime. After an hour they are going to be somewhat I like to call semi-dried. They are dried, but still a little juice and not tough like leather. 

Best crispy chickpeas

Next up, the crispy chickpeas. That’s THE way to do crispy chickpeas. So good you drain them from the can and rinse them. After tap them dry (this is important bc otherwise they are not gonna be crispy) with a kitchen paper. In a pan we add olive oil, garlic and rosemary and let them fry for 2 minutes to infuse the water. Rosemary and garlic out, chickpeas in and crisp them up for 5-10 minutes with some smoked paprika powder and sea salt. If you like the fried garlic and rosemary, go ahead and add them to your salad, otherwise don’t. 
You can make those chickpeas ahead of time and just keep in a jar to snack on every now and then. A life changer.

The dressing:

And lastly to top it all off, the star of the show: the vegan Caesar dressing. Yep. Vegan. No cheese and no sardines. No mayo. Good and good. Instead of Parmesan cheese (not that Parmesan wouldn’t be good, it’s delicious, but sometimes it’s better not to have too much cheese) we are using nutritional yeast (German: Hefeflocken)! You can get those in your local health store (Reformhaus) or in some organic shops. It is made out of yeast, high in protein and really resembles the taste of cheese. The base of the dressing are cashews. Ideally we soak them a few hours or the night before so they get softer and easier to blend. They will ensure everything to get really creamy and add a really nice flavor. We also have some Dijon mustard and capers in it, to replace the sardines, a little vinegar and that’s it. It actually is not super difficult but tastes amazing! 

So now, it’s just left to be mixed up! Nothing more nothing less! The steamed kale, the oven dried tomatoes, the croutons, and the dressing. Toss it all and enjoy! 

Note:

If you want to meal prep this, make sure to leave the chickpeas aside to keep the crunch. You can already toss the salad in the dressing because when using kale, it doesn’t really matter, since the kale then absorbs the flavor and gets softer! 

Happy cooking!
Katie // Une Petite Cuisiniere

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Vegan Ceasar Salad with Crispy Chickpeas

A vegan twist on the classic and it is so good! Super delicious dressing, best ever chickpeas, oven roasted tomatoes and homemade croutons.

Course Appetizer, bowl, brunch, dinner, Main Course, Salad
Cuisine American
Prep Time 10 Minuten
Cook Time 1 Stunde
Soaking Time: 2 Stunden
Total Time 3 Stunden 10 Minuten
Servings 2 servings
Calories 411 kcal

What you will need

For the salad:

  • 4 handful kale off the stem
  • 15 cherry tomatoes
  • 1 slice bread
  • 4 cloves garlic
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 120 g chickpeas

For the dressing:

  • 25 g cashews
  • 2 tsp dijon mustard
  • 2 tsp capers
  • 1/2 lemon, juiced
  • 2 tbsp plant milk
  • 2 tbsp water
  • 1 tbsp nutritional yeast

How to

That is how it works:

  1. Soak the cashews for about 2 hours to overnight in water. 

    Preheat the oven to 100*C. Slice the tomatoes in half and lay them on a baking tray lines with parchment paper. Bake them in the oven for an hour.

  2. In the meantime bring a pot with water to a boil. Take a sieve and place the kale leaves, that have been removed from the stem in there. Let them steam for 2-3 minutes. After remove them and drain under cold water. This will ensure the color to stay and the kale to cool down quicker.

  3. Take the bread and cut it into 1 cm cubes. Press out or grate 2 garlic cloves and combine them with the olive oil. Toss the bread cubes in the oil mixture and then fry them in a pan for about 2 minutes until crispy. 

  4. Take the chickpeas out of the can. Drain and rinse them to get rid of the liquid around them because this would make you go gasy. Tap them dry with some kitchen paper. In a pan heat up the olive oil. Once hot add the garlic and rosemary and fry for about 2 minutes, then take them out. After, you throw the chickpeas along with the sea salt and smoked paprika in and let them fry on medium high for about 5-10 minutes until super crispy.

  5. Drain the cashews from the water. Add them to a food processor and add the nutritional yeast, Dijon mustard, capers, salt, pepper, water and plant milk. Blend until smooth. If too thick, add some more water, if too thin, some more cashews! 

  6. Place the kale in a bowl and mix with the dressing. Separate it into bowl. Take the tomatoes out of the oven and add them into the bowls with the croutons. Top with the chickpeas and if you like it, the fried garlic.

    Serve and enjoy!


Ultimate Hummus

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Ever since I went to boarding school and me and my friends ordered hummus pretty much every week, I am obsessed with it. I just love the taste, the creaminess and everything! It’s so good! 

But since hummus is not too cheap, I decided to make my own because it is so simple! I did not know how simple it was until I watched a YouTube video about it and let me tell you, no one should or will ever buy hummus in the supermarket again after trying out this recipe. You essentially only need 4 ingredients to make it; chickpeas, olive oil, tahini & lemon. This is the most basic form of it. I would recommend though, to include salt, and some more spices. There are ready-to-use spice mixes in supermarkets that take it next level or you can add them yourself. I would add some garlic powder, cumin, cayenne pepper, and paprika powder. 

If plain hummus is too basic for you, then feel free to get creative and make a different flavor. By adding cooked beets, you can make a beetroot hummus, add curry powder for a curry hummus, greens for a green madness hummus, dried tomatoes and basil or pesto for a Mediterranean twist. Honestly, the options are endless, which makes it such a great dish because it is so versatile. You can make the base and then adapt it however you, your family or your friends like it.

Hummus serves an awesome appetizer too. If you decorate it beautifully in a bowl, garnish it with some fresh herbs such as parsley or mint, some veggies, such as tomatoes, peppers, peas or cucumbers, and maybe some other touch of color, like pickled onions, it immediately looks super appetizing! Serve it with some toasted ciabatta or crackers, drizzle with olive oil, and voilá! A stunning and really simple appetizer is ready to be enjoyed! It is something light your guests can snack on while waiting for dinner! 

But don’t now think that hummus only makes a great appetizer, no, it can be used in so much more! Spread it into sandwiches, top it onto bowls, use it as a dip, … you can do so much with it! It’s like avocado, super good and super versatile! I for example love to have it with some toasted bread or in a wrap. This is so good! 

The making process is pretty simple too. It actually is ready in 15 minutes if you buy canned chickpeas. You just need to drain and rinse them, so any of the liquid is removed. This makes it easier to digest, which is really good. Of corse, you can cook them yourself if you want, just bake sure to soak them before and cook them until really soft so they can easily be mashed. I actually prefer cooking them myself, simply because you have more control about how soft they are going to be. Then just add them into a blender along with some Tahini, Olive Oil, lemon juice, salt, spices and a little water. Blend it until really creamy and then you already are done! That’s how easy it is! 

I, as already monitored, love to serve it as an appetizer, but it is great in whichever way you decide to use it. You can make a big batch of it and freeze some, so you always have some on hand! I hope that you’ll enjoy this recipe! 


Happy eating, 
Katie <3

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Hummus

Partydip, Bread Spread, Appetizer – you name it, Hummus is perfect for it!

Course Appetizer, bowl, Snack
Cuisine asian, oriental
Prep Time 15 Minuten
Total Time 15 Minuten
Servings 10 servings
Calories 109 kcal

What you will need

  • 400 g canned chickpeas
  • 2 tbsp Olive Oil
  • 3-4 tbsp Tahini
  • 1/2 tbsp vinegar (white wine vinegar)
  • 1/2 tsp garlic powder
  • 1/2 tsp cumin
  • 1/2 tsp paprika powder
  • 2-3 tbsp of the liquid the chickpeas were in

How to

That is how it works:

  1. Drain the chickpeas from the can. Rinse them with water until there is no foam anymore. This will make the hummus creamier and easier to digest.

  2. Add the chickpeas, along with all the other ingredients, into the food processor. Blend until smooth. If it is too thick for your preference, add more olive oil or water.

  3. Place in a bowl and garnish with some more olive oil, some fresh, cut up vegetables, pickled onions and parsley. Serve with some crackers and enjoy!