How to Get the Chicks to Eat the Chickpeas

Ever see a kid eat chickpeas aka garbanzo beans? The answer is probably almost never. Most children fear beans like spiders. A chickpea on their plate will usually extract a facial expression of HORROR and verbiage such as "YUCK" and "DISGUSTING." Chickpeas are very evident in the Mediterranean diet. They are low in saturated fat, and very low in cholesterol and sodium. They are also a good source of dietary fiber, protein and copper, and a very good source of foliate and manganese.  Hummus is a great way to sneak in those healthy foods for your kids in a pasta dinner but first you need to start by making the hummus which will take you five (5) minutes and cost you about $1.00 for almost 3 cups and it will taste better than store bought. 

                                                         Hummus

15 ounce can "no salt", garbanzo beans

1/2 cup to 3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil (the amount depends on the type of product you buy)

1 clove of garlic (of 2-3 if you like it extra spicy)

salt and pepper to taste

yields about 3 cups of hummus

Drain garbanzo beans, place in a food processor or blender. Add extra virgin olive oil, start with 1/2 cup and garlic.  Pulse. Continue to pulse until creamy by adding a little more olive oil until you get the consistency you want.  Add salt and pepper to taste.

Now, that you know how to make hummus, the following  is how you get your kids to each garbanzo beans without ever knowing by making the recipe below. And, you can get a "green" in the pasta, too, by using broccolini. Broccolini are delicious, sweeter and more tender than broccoli...just tell the kids they are "baby: broccoli. 

                                                      Broccolini

Pasta, Broccolini, Tomato Sauce and Chickpeas

1 pound of pasta, rigatoni, ziti or other short noodles

1pound to 1 pound and 1/2 broccolini

16 ounces canned of tomatoes, preferably San Marzano

1  15 ounce can of chickpeas/garbanzo beans (no salt), drained;  (optional, depends on if it will scare your kids to see a chickpea in the pasta, but you are sneaking it with the hummus so see how much you can get away with)

1 cup of hummus

2  tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

3 cloves rough chopped garlic

2 tablespoon chopped basil (optional)

pecorino romano or parmigano reggiano cheese for topping

salt and pepper to taste

1. Boil water for pasta.

2. Heat olive oil in a deep saucepan, add basil and garlic cook for 10 seconds.  Do not let the garlic get brown because it will be bitter.  Add  tomatoes and cook for about 20-30 minutes at a simmer, add salt and pepper to taste. Ten minutes into cooking add the canned beans to soften.    When done, set aside.

3.  Steam broccolini until tender. Set aside.

4.  Cook pasta in salted water. When al dente, drain and add to tomato sauce.  At this point add the humus and toss and cook for 2 minutes on medium high.  Add broccolini, toss all together and serve with cheese and enjoy!