Tag Archives: snack

Dill Pickle Roasted Chickpeas (Oil-Free)

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I try to keep some type of crunchy snack in the house at all times… let me rephrase that… HEALTHY crunchy snack. I’m a crunchy snacker, I can destroy a bag of chips in no time flat if given the opportunity so I’ve learned not to set myself up for failure. Roasted chickpeas are such a great snack, nice and filling with a satisfying crunch! I’m always searching for new roasted chickpea recipes (I’m currently experimenting with a roasted buffalo “wing” chickpea recipe because I LOVE buffalo wing sauce!) so when I came across this one, I had to try it! Our toddler loved these too which kinda surprised me considering the vinegar taste.

Dill Pickle Roasted Chickpeas

More please Mommy!! (Forehead boo-boo. She fell running through the sprinklers at a friend’s house today, poor kid!) 

Original recipe from Bitter Sweet blog, need to check out more of her recipes!

Dill Pickle Chickpea Crunchies

Basic Brine:

1/2 Cup Cold Water
1/2 Cup White Vinegar
1/4 Cup Apple Cider Vinegar
2 – 3 Teaspoons Light Agave Nectar

3 Cups Cooked Chickpeas OR 2 cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed (SAVE THE LIQUID!)

Seasonings:

2 Tbsp leftover bean cooking liquid OR canned chickpea liquid
1/4 Cup Roughly Chopped Fresh Dill
3 Cloves Garlic, Finely Minced
12 – 1 tsp Coarse Sea Salt or Kosher Salt
1/2 tsp Mustard Powder
1/4 tsp Ground Coriander
1/4 tsp Celery Seed
1/8 tsp Ground Black Pepper
Pinch Red Pepper Flakes

Place all of the ingredients for the brine in a medium-sized jar, including the chickpeas, shake it up, and place it in the fridge. Allow the brine mixture to infuse into the beans for 12 – 24 hours. As one might presume, the longer the chickpeas soak, the more strongly they’ll be flavored with vinegar. It’s up to you whether that’s a good or bad thing. Bear in mind that the bite will mellow significantly after a trip to the oven, so don’t be afraid of having very vinegary beans at this stage. I let mine sit for a little over 24 hours and they turned out GREAT!

Once the chickpeas have been “quick pickled,” drain them thoroughly but do not rinse. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees while you measure out and prep the seasonings. Toss the chickpeas into a bowl along with the bean liquid and all of the aromatics, stirring so that every last bean is thoroughly coated. Transfer to a jellyroll pan or large baking dish (anything with sides- These edible marbles will want to roll right out otherwise) and spread them evenly in one layer.

Bake for 45 – 60 minutes, stirring every 15 or so, until the chickpeas have shrunken in size and are golden brown, with darker spots in some areas. It can be hard to tell when they’re done since the chickpeas will continue to crisp up as they cool, but listen closely and they should rattle when you shake the pan. Remove from heat and let cool completely before snacking and/or storing in an airtight container.

Mix beans with brine ingredients and place in fridge for approx 24 hours

Drain your beans well, chop dill and assemble spice mixture

Don’t forget to drain them well!

Here’s the infamous bean cooking liquid! Great oil replacer!

Coat beans with bean liquid and spices

Bake for 45-60 minutes, turning every 15 minutes

Ready to eat!

 

Healthy No-Bake Cookie Bars (Protein Bars)

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I’ve had a sweet tooth since this morning, for me that’s pretty rare because I’m not a huge sweets person. I decided to try these Healthy No-Bake Cookie Bars (also could be called protein bars) and WOW am I glad I did! I made a variation of these into cookies but I’ve never tried the addition of protein powder. These would be an awesome post-workout snack!

It only took me about 10 minutes to prepare the mix before pressing it into the pan. The recipe calls for Arbonne brand chocolate protein powder but I used my favorite Organic Nutribiotic Brown Rice Protein Powder and added 2 Tbsp of cocoa powder instead.

Ingredients (makes 20 bars):

Organic peanut butter, 1 cup
Agave nectar, 2/3 cup

1 cup chocolate protein powder OR 1 cup plain or vanilla protein powder with 3-4 Tbsp cocoa powder
Rolled oats, 1 1/2 cups
Ground flax seed, 1/4 cup

Instructions (10 minutes, plus cooling time):

In a small saucepan, whisk peanut butter and agave nectar over medium-low heat for 3 – 4 minutes, until the mixture is well combined and just beginning to bubble.

In a mixing bowl, stir together chocolate protein powder, rolled oats, and ground flax seed.

Pour peanut butter and agave mixture into dry ingredients.  Stir just until all of the dry ingredients have been moistened.  The mixture will be crumbly, this is okay as long as everything is moistened.

Press mixture into an ungreased 8 x 8 inch glass baking dish.  Once bars are completely cool, cut into 20 rectangles.  Serve and enjoy!  (I individually wrap them so that we can literally grab and go!)

I know, it looks weird but trust me these are really good!

They cooled pretty fast and I cut them into squares and put them in a container in the fridge. These are so good! My toddler LOVES them! I surprised her with a little treat with her afternoon snack and she was very happy!

Healthy No-Bake Cookie Bars