This is pure comfort food for me… A creamy rich mash with spicy chickpeas. But the best bit is there are 4 serves of vegetables! And you wouldn’t know it to taste.
If you’re not familiar with Baharat, don’t worry, I’ve got alternative spices listed in the variations below.
Spiced Chickpeas with Cauli Mash
Ingredients
- 1/2 medium cauliflower chopped
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 1 onion chopped
- 1 teaspoon baharat see below for alternative spices
- 1 can chickpeas 400g / 14oz, drained
- 4 tablespoons tomato paste
Instructions
- Bring 2cm (1in) water to boil in a medium saucepan. Add cauli and simmer covered for 10-15 minutes or until cauli is really tender. (Be careful not to let it dry out and burn – add more water as needed).
- Meanwhile, melt half the butter in a small frying pan. Add onion and cook over a medium heat until soft but not browned, about 10 minutes.
- When the onion is soft add the spice, chickpeas and tomato. Stir well and bring to a simmer. Remove from the heat, taste and season with salt and pepper.
- When the cauli is cooked, drain and return to the pan you cooked it in with the remaining butter. Puree with a stick blender or mash well with a fork.
- Serve spiced chickpeas on a bed of cauli mash.
Variations
different spice / no baharat – baharat is a lebanese blend of 7 spices and a favourite of mine. The best substitute is to use equal parts ground cumin, ground coriander and smoked paprika. Or try curry powder or garam masala for a more Indian vibe. I also like to use the Moroccan spice blend, ras el hanout
carnivore / paleo – replace chickpeas with ground (minced) beef or lamb. Brown well before adding the spice and tomato. Plus use coconut oil instead of butter for paleo.
more veg – add a chopped carrot and celery stick to the onion. Serve with loads of fresh herbs such as mint, coriander (cilantro) or parsley. Add a handful of frozen peas with the chickpeas. Serve everything on a bed of baby spinach.
vegan / dairy-free – replace butter with olive oil or coconut oil.
different legumes – replace chickpeas with white beans, black beans or cooked lentils (you need about 250g / 9oz cooked legumes).
extra protein – add a handful of cashews to simmer with the cauli.
carb lovers / more substantial – serve with pita bread or mashed potatoes.
Waste Avoidance Strategy
cauliflower – will keep for weeks in a plastic bag in the fridge. Can be frozen but the texture isn’t as good when defrosted.
butter – keeps in the fridge for months.
onion – will keep in the pantry for months. Best if in a dark corner in a brown paper bag.
baharat / chickpeas / tomato paste – keep them in the pantry.
Prepare Ahead
Yes! Just cook as per the recipe but keep the chickepas and mash separately. Leftovers will keep in the fridge for 2 weeks or can be frozen.
Add to my Old Favourite Recipes
We all were surprised how good this was! I used berbere seasoning (mine has garam masala included and not very spicy). Because I doubled the recipe and didn’t have enough tomato paste, I also added a can of tomatoes with green chili. It was just the right heat, flavor, and consistency to go with the creamy cauliflower. Yum!
oh yum Melodee! Don’t you love when a meal surprises 🙂
The flavors on this were great! I had to add water for the tomato paste. Jules, to make again, was wondering if tomato passata would work instead, like it does with Berbere spiced lentils? Paste seems slightly more concentrated in flavor, but not sure I understand the differences in how they work.
Yes Melanie you could absolutely use passata – the only difference is that tomato paste has had more moisture removed so it’s more concentrated. If you use passata and it’s too watery – you can always simmer for a bit to reduce it down.
My fake mashed potatoes ended up looking like fake rice instead (maybe because I used a hand potato masher? Or maybe I didn’t cook the cauliflower enough?). Great taste, though.
A hand masher would struggle to get that smooth texture Kelly… And cooking longer will help but over cooked cauli doesn’t taste that nice so be careful Jx
I didn’t have baharat, but I used the cumin/coriander/paprika blend you recommend and it was delicious. We already love cauliflower mash, but I was kind of surprised how well it went with the chickpeas. Silly of me to be be surprised, as your recipes usually turn out wonderfully. 🙂
So glad you liked it Jennifer!
made this last night. Very tasty especially the cauli mash which I think may become a staple at our house! Glad to have your site back, btw. Not sure what I would do without your awesomely delicious yet simple and easy recipes!
Great Ellie!
And yes it was a bummer being down this week… So good to be back 🙂
Jx