MAKES ABOUT 1½ CUPS • DIFFICULTY: easy
More chickpeas! There are just so many things you can do with these little protein- and fiber-packed legumes. I can’t get enough of them, and neither should you!
1½ cups cooked or 1 15.5-ounce BPA-free can or Tetra Pak salt-free chickpeas, drained, well rinsed, and blotted dry
1 tablespoon Date Syrup
1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
2 teaspoons white miso paste
1½ teaspoons smoked paprika
¼ teaspoon onion powder
½ teaspoon Savory Spice Blend
Preheat the oven to 375ºF. Line a baking sheet with a silicone mat or parchment paper and set aside. Make sure the chickpeas are as dry as possible and remove any loose skins.
In a medium bowl, combine 2 tablespoons of water and all the remaining ingredients, except the chickpeas and Savory Spice Blend. Add the chickpeas and toss to coat evenly.
Transfer the chickpeas to the prepared baking sheet, spreading evenly in a single layer. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, stirring every 8 to 10 minutes, until lightly browned and crunchy. Sprinkle the roasted chickpeas with the spice blend and serve warm or at room temperature. These are best eaten on the day they are made.
One of my all-time favorite snacks is air-popped popcorn with nutritional yeast. If you aren’t already familiar it, nutritional yeast is a deactivated yeast (meaning it doesn’t grow like baking yeast) and has a cheesy, nutty flavor (as opposed to brewer’s yeast, a beer industry by-product that tastes nasty). I just wish it had a better name. Where was the person who came up with “aquafaba” when nutritional yeast was being named? In New Zealand, it’s called Brufax. I don’t know if that’s worse. Those in the know call it “nooch.” Okay, that’s pretty cute.