chickpea stew

Thanks to my newest friend, Julia (no, not Child), I had company in the kitchen on Wednesday! At her genius suggestion, we decided to make dinner together. I was thrilled to have a buddy with whom to cook, and I realized that although it's rare that I make myself a real dinner in the middle of the week, it never takes as much time as I expect and the payoff is more inspired and satisfying than many of the usual low- maintenance suspects. It was easy to choose a recipe that we both liked, since she's a vegetarian and I often eat like one; many of the ingredients were already in one of our kitchens, so the meal was easy on our wallets, too. Bonus: she let me keep the leftovers of everything, because her mom wanted to clear out their kitchen in anticipation of Passover!

Although the recipe is extremely simple, the results were ultra tasty and quite filling. We left the stew to simmer while we nibbled on our salads (beets, zucchini, romaine, gorgonzola--all thanks to Julia!), and there wasn't much liquid left when we checked on it. Not a problem, but it made it a little less stew-y. Also, the original recipe includes russet potatoes, but we nixed them and cooked up some barley instead.

Middle Eastern chickpea stew
Adapted from The Big Book of Vegetarian (Chronicle Books, 2004)
Serves 6
Time: Who knows? We talked and talked and talked, so it took us forever!

1 1/2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 medium red bell pepper, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp. ground cumin (the addition of which made Julia murmur, "Mmm! Smells like fajitas!")
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
1 15-ounce can diced tomatoes and their juice
3 Tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro
3 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
3 Tbsp. tomato paste
2 c. vegetable broth
2 15-ounce cans chickpeas, rinsed and drained
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.

1. In a large, nonstick skilled over medium-high heat, warm olive oil. Add onion, bell pepper, garlic, cumin and oregano. Cook, stirring often, until vegetables soften, 5 to 6 minutes.

2. Add tomatoes, cilantro and parsley. Cook, stirring occasionally, until most of liquid has evaporated and mixture has thickened, about 5 minutes.

3. Stir in tomato paste and cook for 1 minute. Add broth and bring to a boil. Add chickpeas, lower heat and simmer until sauce thickens, about 10 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper, and serve hot, preferably with cooked barley or other grain and with pleasant company. ;)