As I have written about before, I am eagerly learning about Indian food.  I’ve found it to be a lot of fun to make, and my husband and kids are thrilled whenever I try a new recipe for dinner or serve up some Indian chai at breakfast.  Now that I’m starting to become familiar with the different spices and techniques, I thought it would be fun to create my own Indian-inspired recipe.

My sister came over for dinner the other night, and since she is vegetarian I knew I’d have to make a meat-free meal with some vegetable protein mixed in.  I combined onions, carrots and chickpeas along with some traditional Indian spices to make a dish that perfectly paired with a few other recipes from my favorite Indian cookbook.

Spiced Carrots and Chickpeas

Olive oil

1 yellow onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, chopped

1/2 teaspoon tumeric

1/2 teaspoon cumin

salt

5 carrots, peeled and sliced into coins

2 cups chickpeas (I cook a big batch of dried beans once a week, so this dish is a great way to use up my weekly stash. If you are using canned beans, drain the liquid but do not rinse.)

Heat a nice swirl of olive oil in a large pot.  Add onions and cook until they start to turn golden.  Drop in garlic, tumeric and cumin. Stir until fragrant.  Add carrots and cook until softened (or until they reach the texture you like).  Add chick peas and stir until heated through.

This dish is wonderful served hot, room temperature or cold.  And it tastes great the next day!