Chickpeas Romesco with garlic saffron rice

I’ve talked about this dish before but I need to write about it again. It’s one of my favourite meals from Veganomicon but I hardly ever see anyone make it on their blog or talk about on discussion boards. It’s saved me from panic and chaos when gluten free people have visited; I’ve served it to at at least 3 sets of visiting omnivores and it’s honestly just a great meal.

I roast my own red peppers for the chickpeas; because otherwise it’s very easy and doesn’t take too long. But you could use jarred roasted peppers if you were really pushed for time. If you own a Vitamix you don’t even need to blend the sauce in batches because it all fits in in one go. They look just like chickpeas in tomato sauce but there’s so much more to them than that; they’re tangy and nutty and herby and are just delicious. As you know I never reproduce recipes from books on here unless I’ve significantly changed them, but if you want to make this and don’t have Veganomicon (why not?), you could google it and you’ll find it.

The rice is also from Veganomicon. It says it serves 4 but if you are healthy eaters I’d recommend using a bit more. The rice I use cooks a bit quicker too – and I ALWAYS use the optional toasted almonds on it.

With these 2 dishes I always serve something green. My preferred choice is sprouting broccoli but in this case it was greens. I boil them, then drain them and add to a frying pan with olive oil, garlic, chilli flakes, capers and salt. The yummy capers cut through the sweetness of the sauce in the chickpeas perfectly.

If you are vegan and own Veganomicon and haven’t made this, hang your head in shame. And even if you aren’t, and you don’t, then you really ought to.

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