Chickpea “Croutons”

These chickpea croutons have become my best friend.  By changing up the spice blend, they can be sweet or savory, eaten as a snack, or a garnish, eaten right away, or saved for a few days.  My new bestie.

My dog has a bestie too ( actually, a few besties…she is a popular girl, what can I say).

One Saturday, one of her little friends was visiting for a few hours (yes, a doggie play date.  I am one of those people).Chloe and Belle ran through the house, playing tag and wrestling with each other until the doorbell rang.  Opening the door, I realized only one of the dogs had rushed the door with me, protecting me from the dangerous, psychopathic teenager selling mulch to raise money for their school band.  As Chloe barked at the intruder, then wagged her tail, batted her eyelashes and tried to lick the poor kid to death, we noticed that Belle was missing.

But how could that be????  No one had opened a door, a window or even windows on their computer.  Where was Belle?  We called.  No answer.  We ran upstairs and looked, calling her name.  No answer.  We ran downstairs and looked, calling her name.  No answer.  At that moment, my phone dinged.  Belle’s daddy was on his way to pick her up. Da da dum…..

Now, the only people crazier about their dog than we are about ours, are Belle’s parents.  Our dog might be the queen, but theirs is the queen, Princess Kate, Princess Diana, and Clare Foy all rolled into one. We are crazy, but they make our crazy look like neglect.  And now, we had apparently lost their precious baby girl.

Tim, myself, and my sister-in-law rand around the house, peering under beds, looking behind couches, opening cupboard doors and in general, having massive panic attacks.  We called, hollared and screamed her name with such desperation, we made Marlon Brando’s cry of  “Stella!”  sound like he was casually inviting her over for a cup of tea and scones.  No Belle.  Not a bark, growl, sniffle, whimper or pant.

Chloe, meanwhile, pulled up a chair, got a bucket of popcorn and a large slurpie, and was thoroughly enjoying the show.  At one point, with the doomsday clock ticking down to zero, Tim turned to Chloe and demanded, “Find Belle!”   Chloe, unfazed by the fact that we were all acting like we had seconds to live before the meteor hit, looked at him like, “ Oh, silly human.  You have apparently mistaken me for a bloodhound, or some other working dog.  The only thing I hunt for is belly rubs and meat.  Now, if you had attached a pork chop to Belle’s collar, I might be willing to help you out.  No?  Then I’ll just continue to sit her while the clock runs down to zero.”

Finally, just as Belle’s father was pulling up to the house and we were trying to come up with a plausible story as to how we had lost their precious child, “um, she just stepped out for a minute, but should be back momentarily”  or, “she is a bit indisposed at the moment; something she ate perhaps? She needed the restroom, but I’m sure she’ll be feeling better in a few minutes. How about some coffee while we wait, or maybe some wine? Vodka? A shot and a beer?  You might want to prepare yourself for some bad news.”

As his finger was poised over the bell, and we were seeing who would draw the short straw and deliver the devastating news, I happened to open a closet door, that I swear had not been opened, and there was Belle, sitting in the dark, wagging her tail and beaming up at me like she had been having the time of her life and just won the grand prize for the best game ever of hide and seek.

Safely delivered into her father’s loving arms, we all collapsed on the couch, thinking maybe we should consider that shot and beer after all while Chloe bounced into the room like, “That was so much fun.  Let’s play that game again!”

Ingredients:

• 1 can of chickpeas, drained
• 1 Tablespoon olive oil
• 1 teaspoon each of dried rosemary, parsley, sage, thyme and salt

Directions:

1. ‘Preheat the oven to 400.
2. With a kitchen towel, dry the chickpeas well by gently patting and rubbing them.  Put them in a medium bowl.
3. In a small container with a lid, combine the spices and shake till well combined.  Drizzle the oil over the chickpeas and toss lightly to coat. Pour the spice mixture over them and toss or stir till the spices are evenly distributed.
4. Place the chickpeas on a baking sheet and bake for 40 minutes, stirring halfway through. Start checking them at 30 minutes and if they look like they are starting to get too brown (or burn around the edges) don’t go the full 40 minutes.  Some ovens are hotter than others.
5. Remove from oven and turn the oven temperature down to 300.  When the temperature has dropped, put the chickpeas back in and bake for 1 hour, undisturbed.  Remove from oven and let cool.  Store in airtight container till used.

Enjoy!