roasted chickpeas Archives - Proud Italian Cook

We can officially now say that winter is behind us and spring has arrived, and this is the perfect salad to usher in the warm weather! Farfalle pasta, tender asparagus, cherry tomatoes, baby arugula and pecorino and pepper roasted chickpeas.

I love the gourmet food section of HomeGoods I always find something good there, the minute I saw these cute colorful butterflies I knew I’d be making a pasta salad so I quickly grabbed a couple of boxes, don’t they just scream spring? The pasta is made with all natural ingredients too, red beets, red bell pepper, spinach and tumeric, no food coloring at all.

Boil gently for 10 to 12 minutes then spray with cold water to cool down.

Slice cherry tomatoes in half add 1 crushed garlic clove, a healthy dose of olive oil, fresh chopped basil, salt and pepper, as it sits for a while the tomato juice will mingle with the oil and this will become your dressing.
For the roasted chickpeas I used one can that was drained and patted dry then tossed on a baking sheet with olive oil, lots of cracked black pepper, salt and a healthy dose of pecorino romano. Roast for around 15 minutes at 400 or until golden.

I cut the asparagus at a diagonal and roasted them for a few minutes, tender but al’ dente. Just toss everything together adding more olive oil, basil and grated pecorino romano.
For this version right above and below I added in julienned zucchini and sliced olives for added flavor and texture.