Tuesday, May 5, 2009

Fresh chickpeas and wax beans with baby artichokes

I will admit, I got excited when I saw containers of fresh chickpeas at my produce market. Yes, I do realize that I’m a total food nerd. Anyways, I abandoned my plan for a butter lettuce salad and immediately starting thinking about what to do with the chickpeas. There was a pile of wax beans sitting next to the chickpeas, so I picked some up because I liked the color contrast.

I wanted a third vegetable to go in the mix, so I wandered around the store looking for inspiration. I thought about fava beans, I considered English peas. Then I spotted baby artichokes, and my mind was made up.

chickpeas, wax beans, artichokesThis dish was a little bit time consuming – the chickpeas needed to be shelled, and the artichokes needed to be prepped. Once I got through that, I blanched each type of vegetable and put them in the fridge for later.

When it was time to eat, I melted some butter in a pan and added a minced shallot. After the shallot had cooked through, I added the vegetables and a generous dose of salt and pepper. I finished the dish with some fresh tarragon from my garden.

This was a great way to enjoy spring vegetables, and worth the extra effort. The fresh chickpeas had a very different taste from their dried counterpart. I especially liked the color and texture contrast between the different vegetables.

chickpeas, wax beans, artichokes, vegetables, vegetable medley
Spring vegetable medley
Serves 3-4

½ pound wax beans, trimmed
1 cup of shelled fresh chickpeas
12 baby artichokes, trimmed and quartered
1 tablespoon butter
1 medium shallot, minced
Salt and pepper to taste
1 tablespoon fresh tarragon

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the wax beans, blanch for 2-3 minutes or until tender. Transfer the wax beans to an ice bath. Place the chickpeas in the boiling water, cook for about 10-12 minutes or until tender. Add the chickpeas to the ice bath. Put the artichokes into the boiling water, blanch for about 3-4 minutes or until tender. Place into ice bath. Remove all the vegetables from the ice bath and pat dry with paper towels.

Melt the butter in a large pan over medium heat. Add the shallot, sauté until the shallot is translucent and tender, about 3 minutes. Add the rest of the vegetables, toss to coat with the shallot butter and season with salt and pepper. Cook until the vegetables have warmed through. Stir in the fresh tarragon at the end.

62 comments:

Cathy said...

Food nerd or not...I hate to admit that I am VERY jealous of the produce you find!

Maris said...

Looks delicious! I just started Weight Watchers so I"m going to need all the veggie recipes I can get!

Stacey Snacks said...

I love the combination of these vegetables.....I had a chickpea salad for lunch today, and I can never get enough artichokes!

Dewi said...

Beautiful Spring vegetables Sara. I never tried the fresh chickpeas before, I hope to find them at the farmer's soon.
Cheers,
elra

LK- Healthy Delicious said...

nice salad!
I don't think Ive ever seen fresh chickpeas before! I would have bought them too.

Anonymous said...

I haven't seen fresh chickpeas either - very neat! Delicious spring veggies!

Juliana said...

The salad looks great...love the combination of veggies. Nice for a hot day.

Unknown said...

You make me want to eat healthier :) I've never had fresh chickpeas or wax beans but I'll keep my eyes peeled at the farmers markets this summer!

Jenn@slim-shoppin said...

I've never seen chick peas like that before, I always buy the ones in the can!

But your dish looks so fresh and amazing, I think it was worth the time involved too!

Rosa's Yummy Yums said...

A gorgeous dish! Very spring-like.

Cheers,

Rosa

Pearl said...

wow! love these combo of veggies :)

Miette said...

This dish is very scrumptious! I love combo of these vegetables! Delicious!

Cheers,

Miette.

Pearl said...

p.s. the purple peanuts wouldn't make purple peanut butter (unfortunately) because it's just the thin outer skin that is purple :)

LaDue & Crew said...

Gorgeous veggie salad! I have never seen fresh chick peas before! I wish I had a market like yours!

Chef E said...

That looks so good, but I am ashamed (publicly admit it) I do not cook wax beans, and only tried them once, but this might sway me...

Sylvia said...

I love wax beans, great combination

Julia said...

Now that's spring! I'm going to have to go to the market today to see if they have fresh chickpeas. I've never seen them before, but now I'm intrigued.

Donna-FFW said...

Ha you are funny total food nerd. Well, I for one am glad you are because you produce the MOST gorgeous dishes.

Half Baked said...

I'm a food nerd too and can totally relate. I've never come across fresh chickpeas but definitely would have bought them as well!!

Soma said...

Real Yummy! We get the fresh chickpeas, but never got around making anything with them.. my kids & us too snack on them right out the shells:-D

Culinary Wannabe said...

The thought of fresh chickpeas has never even crossed my mind. I'm going to keep my eyes out for them just to see what they taste like.

Netts Nook said...

Wow your pictures are great and I love your combo of veggies. Great Job.

Heather S-G said...

Wow, you mean chickpeas are grown all dried and hard? Awesome...I have never, ever seen fresh ones (I'd be right there ogling them with the nerdiest of them)! What a beautiful dish; I bet it was totally worth the time put it! Looks great, Sara.

teresa said...

Oh how yummy! This is just beautiful!

Reeni said...

I've never seen fresh chickpeas in my life! I can only imagine how delicious they are. This is a lovely dish, so fresh and light.

Debbie said...

What a delicious looking veggie dish....I love them all!

stephchows said...

I've never even thought about fresh chick peas???? No way!! I need to go find some to try!

Melissa@ For the Love of Health said...

I get excited with fresh fruits and veggies too! Good finds!

What a great mix!

Lyndas recipe box said...

What beautiful spring vegetables you found! I wouldn't know what to do if I had so many choices, but this looks healthy and delicious!

lisaiscooking said...

I think I'm a food nerd too. I got very excited to find baby artichokes the other day (never happens here). This salad looks fantastic, and I'm curious about the different taste of fresh chickpeas!

unconfidential cook said...

What a beautiful/delicious combination...it does sound time consuming, but looks well worth it.

noble pig said...

I have never seen freah chickpeas anywhere. My store had baby artichokes this morning and I was excited too. This is beautiful!

Kristine said...

Yay for food nerds! This looks so good....very nice.

NKP said...

I have never even seen a picture for fresh chickpeas, what a great find!

Diana said...

I think you are one of the most ambitious food bloggers I know. Very impressive!

Cate O'Malley said...

I don't think I've ever seen, much less eaten, fresh chick peas. Artichokes, on the other hand, is a favorite friend. The dish looks like a fantastic way to celebrate fresh Spring produce.

The Food Hunter said...

Looks very springish and so yummy!

Gera@SweetsFoodsBlog said...

Delicious spring vegs, surely a wonderful salad and totally healthy!

Angie's Recipes said...

Never saw wax beans before... I would probably take that as yellow garden beans..
A brilliantly colourful dish, like those oil paintings...

Creative Classroom Core said...

Ive been loving chickpeas lately, so I am glad to fins another great sounding recipe to use them!
Thanks for sharing!

pigpigscorner said...

I've never seen fresh chickpeas or wax beans before. I'm jealous of what you can get there!

Sean said...

98% of the time, I only get to see the yellow, canned chickpeas but what a refreshing breath of air! This dish looks so refreshing and delicious!

La Cuisine d'Helene said...

I never seen fresh chickpeas in Canada. I would love your dish.

Annie said...

I eat chickpeas all the time, except I have never had them fresh, only from a can.
Interesting how the they look green when they are fresh. They must be delicious... I can't wait to try them.

Heather said...

your artichoke recipes are all so tasty! they look so good - especially with the wax beans :)

Femin Susan said...

Sound delicious!
cheers!

Lorraine @NotQuiteNigella said...

Hehe then I must be a total food nerd too! I get so excited at seeing the new season's produce too. This looks wonderful Sara!

Olga said...

LOVE chickpeas, but never saw fresh ones! Looks like a great spring salad!

Amanda @ Mrs.W's Kitchen said...

Oh, man! Once again you've got my attention in a big way, Sara. I've never even seen a fresh chick pea! This really looks great!

Pam said...

Love it! This is my kind of side dish.

Marta said...

I'm thinking it doesn't matter how long this took to make: it sounds like HEAVEN! What a perfect little dish!!
I don't think I've ever even seen fresh chickpeas before, you're so lucky!
Fresh legumes/beans are worth the pain, though. The only ones I ever find are fresh pinto/roma beans, and they are just so much more tender and yummy than the dried ones. Plus, shelling them is kind of therapeutic :)

gastroanthropologist said...

I can't believe some people hate veggies. This looks so lovely. The fresh produce you've gotten looks so good!

Alex said...

Those colours are fabulous!

Jenna said...

what a beautiful combination!! This dish looks so fresh and good!

Anonymous said...

totally yummy looking!

Jessica@Foodmayhem said...

I've never had fresh chickpeas. I wonder if I can get any here in NY, doubtful...

Jescel said...

wow.. beautiful spring dish and so healthy at that! fresh produce is the best. never tried fresh chickpeas before, but i'm sure i'll like it.

Barbara Bakes said...

Another great healthy recipe. Thanks!

Jennifer said...

Your pictures are simply AMAZING!!!!!!! The medely sounds soooo good!

Judy said...

Nice combo of flavors. I've never even seen fresh chickpeas anywhere, but I would react as you did.

Unknown said...

that looks amazing, a great ode to spring!! sorry you couldn't find ramps, they are still in my whole foods... the farmers markets are opening soon!

The Caked Crusader said...

Wax beans? I've never heard of, nor seen such things! Amazing!