Delicious Vegan Protein

Photo by Ingrid Beckman

If you want something that’s completely satisfying for lunch or dinner, try these extra-special Chickpea Patties. You may find that two or even one of them are all you need to feel deliciously sated, though you may want a vegetable side dish for a more well-rounded meal.

Chickpeas, also known as garbanzo beans, are one of the best vegan or vegetarian proteins. One cup of cooked chickpeas, or two of these patties, will contain 14.5 grams of protein. They are also packed with vitamins, minerals, and fiber, offering many health benefits.

Chickpeas often make an appearance in the foods of India (where Ayurveda was born), but this recipe has distinct Mediterranean flavors—basil, olive oil, arugula, and kalamata olives. If you don’t like olives or arugula, the patties are still heavenly, but in my humble opinion, it’s the olives and arugula that make these “extra special.” It didn’t occur to me to serve the patties on a bed of arugula on their debut appearance shown in the photo above, but that’s my plan for the next time I make them—because I love arugula! And if you can’t get enough olives, you might want to chop up an extra half cup and stir these right into the chickpea mixture.

Forget those chick nuggets, my dear omnivorous readers, and try these yummy Chickpea Patties today! Bon appetito! ♥

Lisa J. Mitchell

CHICKPEA PATTIES

Preparation Time: About 40 minutes or 90 minutes in an Instant Pot—plus 8 hours soaking time
Makes 8 patties

You could use canned beans, but that’s not the Ayurvedic way!

Cook’s Tip: It’s ideal to cook hard legumes in a standard pressure cooker or Instant Pot on the pressure cooker setting to neutralize lectins, as I’ve discussed before. If you cook them in a standard pot, plan on a cooking time of at least 1 hour or more to ensure that the beans are tender. This makes them easier to digest.

2 cups dried chickpeas
1 large onion
¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
16 or more kalamata olives
1½ to 2 teaspoons mineral salt
2 teaspoons dried basil
2 to 3 cloves garlic, pressed
8 ounces arugula

1. Soak the chickpeas at least 8 hours before cooking them. Rinse the beans well and cook them with 5 cups water on full pressure for 30 minutes in an Instant Pot, or until a standard pressure cooker comes to full pressure and releases naturally. In a standard pot, bring the beans to a boil; then reduce the heat to medium and continue to cook, covered, until the beans are tender and easy to pierce with a fork—anywhere from 1 to 2 hours.

2. While the beans are cooking, dice and sauté an onion in 2 tablespoons oil on medium-low heat, until the onions are golden and starting to caramelize. Add the cumin and coriander, and stir for about 15 seconds. Set the pan aside until the chickpeas are ready. Slice the olives and set these aside.

3. Strain the chickpeas over a bowl and then set aside 1 cup of the cooking water. Mash the chickpeas until most are quite soft. (Leave some chickpeas whole, if you like). Add ½ cup of the reserved cooking water and ¼ cup olive oil to the mash, and mix it with a large spoon. Add the onion mixture, salt, and basil, and stir well. Taste the mixture. If it’s dry to your taste, add a bit more of the reserved water. You may form this mixture into patties and serve as is. Alternatively—and definitely if you’re serving them after refrigeration—you may reheat the patties on a griddle over a medium heat with the remaining olive oil.

4. Set up plates, each with a small bed of arugula. Serve the patties on the arugula and/or topped with arugula as well as with the chopped olives.

V Add ⅛ teaspoon GF asafetida and 1 to 2 teaspoons grated, fresh ginger.

K Replace olive oil with sunflower oil.

FOOD | HEALTH | SPIRITUALITY

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