Who said snacks can’t be nutritious and taste great too?
Martina has already shared some tasty recipes that prove that you CAN snack healthy and now I’d like to share one of my favourites with you. I recently spent a week up in Muskoka, one of Ontario’s cottage country areas here in Canada. And I wanted to ensure I had some healthy snacks on hand. One of the snacks I brought with me is roasted chickpeas.
Chickpeas are sometimes also referred to as ‘Chana’ or ‘Garbanzo’. This recipe is super simple, so long as you can operate an oven and open a can 🙂 Chickpeas are very nutritious. They are a good source of fibre (in other words they help stabilize blood sugar and keep you feeling fuller longer), and contain protein (12 grams of protein per cup – note however that it’s not a complete protein) and iron. They are also a good source of electrolytes as they contain a good balance of potassium and magnesium within.
The following ingredients were used to make roasted chickpeas:
– 1 can chickpeas (or cook your own, that’s what I do)
– 2 tablespoons olive oil (or camellia oil)
– 1 clove garlic (or 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder)
– 1/2 teaspoon sea salt (I recommend Celtic sea salt because this salt is good for you. It’s highly mineralized and helps you get more nutritional value out of your vegetables by helping you digest them better)
– 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
– 1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne (or enough to taste – I personally like mine spicy so I just add more)
Step by step instructions in preparing the roasted chickpeas:
1) Preheat oven to 177C. Rinse and drain chickpeas. Dry thoroughly on paper towels. Make sure you dry them really well.
2) In a bowl, combine chickpeas with oil and garlic. Sprinkle salt, pepper and cayenne overtop and mix well.
3) Transfer chickpeas to a lined cookie sheet and bake for about 1 hour, stirring occasionally until golden and crisp.
4) Remove from oven. Let cool on a paper towel lined tray.
Bon appetit!
Store your roasted chickpeas in an airtight container at room temperature. Also, if you are purchasing canned chickpeas, their size varies among brands. Larger chickpeas work best for this recipe.
I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I do 🙂
To fitness with love,
Tanya
One word – Yum!!