Thursday, October 24, 2013

Bacon Parmesan Chickpeas | Friday Night Bites



Do you crave crunchy salty snacks?  If the answer is yes, then I have the perfect treat for you.  I know that salt is not that good for you but on the other hand we do need some in our daily diets.  Give me a bag of Lays potato chips versus a chocolate chip cookie any day – the crunch, salt and starch completely make me happy.  With that unhealthy craving, I thought I would make my snack a bit on the healthy side by using chickpeas. This little treat has been in my head for while, just needed to execute.

Okay the next ingredient is not healthy one iota BUT it is completely tasty and an all American favorite food – BACON!  Please don’t be mad at me, but instead of vegetable oil, I used the bacon drippings as my fat to cook the chickpeas.  Perhaps I balanced the bad and good?  I know, I am probably not fooling anyone, but these kinds of snacks are the type to enjoy in moderation.

After opening the can of chickpeas (a.k.a. – garbanzo beans) and rinsing, I realized that there was a “skin” on each one that needed to be removed.  This task took much longer than anticipated.  I soon surmised that if you rinse, lie on a paper towel and pat dry, then air dry, the skins are easily removed.  You simply take another paper towel and ever so gently rub and the skins will come off.  Then you are ready to rock and roll onto cooking these little treats.

(Click "Read More" below to continue post)



A can of chickpeas is consistently in my pantry for soups, salads and now these snacks to make at a moments notice.  They are at their peak when they are still warm and fresh out of the oven in my opinion.  They would be perfect with your favorite cold beer in a chilled glass. Warning – they are addictive. Smile. By the way, if you loved watching 24 back in the day, then you will love the new show on NBC called – “The Blacklist”.  Hubby and I are completely addicted!


Bacon Parmesan Chickpeas

1 (15 ounce) can Garbanzo Beans
2 Slices of Apple wood smoked bacon, cooked until crispy and crumbled
1 Tablespoon of Bacon Drippings
Hickory Smoked Salt
Parmesan Cheese

Rinse, drain and pat dry the garbanzo beans.  Remove outer skins.  Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  In a bowl, add the garbanzo beans and bacon drippings and toss.  Spread onto a cookie sheet and bake for 30 minutes.  Remove from the oven and season with the hickory smoked salt and sprinkle the grated parmesan cheese and toss.  Add the crumbled bacon and spoon everything into a bowl to enjoy.


7 comments:

  1. Sounds totally delish to me and yes I loved that show 24 I watch it sometimes on my iPad :) so I may have to look up Blacklist.

    ReplyDelete
  2. These chickpeas look like such an addictive snack!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Oh my goodness..how did I know you were going to use your hickory smoked salt -just perfect for this appetizer and no I'm not mad at you ;)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Yes, yes I do love salty snacks! I would love to have a bowl of these chickpeas in front of me right now - as I'm struggling with a case of writer's block. :D

    ReplyDelete
  5. Looks delicious! We love roasted chickpeas as a snack, but never tried bacon and parmesan. My husband wants to watch black list but it is on the same time as castle (I know they are already together.. so why am I still watching?)

    ReplyDelete
  6. I think just 2 slices of bacon make these quite legal Lisa! They look amazing and I can totally see how they could be addicting!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Gosh, I can just imagine how good these tasted. I always have chickpeas in my pantry for snacks like this but I'd never considered using bacon grease--brilliant!

    ReplyDelete

It simply makes me smile when I receive a new comment and I look forward to hearing from you!

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.