Spicy Chickpea Millet Bowls | gluten free | vegan

Make lunchtime into flavour time with easy gluten free and vegan bowls of coriander-lime millet, seasoned tomato salad, and crispy, spicy chickpeas. Healthy, hearty, and delicious!
I get hungry at lunchtime folks. Whether I’ve been trapped at my desk all morning, or I’ve been enjoying a great weekend morning out and about, this girl needs a proper lunch. This past weekend Chris and I had a hot date at the x-ray clinic (result: yay, no stress fracture for me! Back to running I go!); and then spent the afternoon traipsing around the shops finding him a suit for a wedding we are attending in a few weeks (he looks very handsome in his all black, but we were both sad that the black and pink floral suit we spotted wasn’t going to be appropriate for the formal dress code). In between these two though, we had to have a break for lunch otherwise I would have thrown a very ‘Toddlers and Tiaras’ style tantrum on the floor of the shopping center felt very hungry all afternoon. This wasn’t the lunch I had, but boy do I wish it was. This bowl is flavour squared. All the individual pieces are delicious in their own right, but when you Hulk-smash your super-styled bowl (because super-styled bowls just look so pretty and you eat with your eyes first) and mix everything together you realise that you want a little bit of everything on your fork all at once! Let’s start with the simple, but truly exquisite tomato salad. The key is to wait until tomatoes are at their absolute best. Don’t make do with pink, mushy over-wintered tomatoes. Go for the sweet, perfectly ripe cherry tomatoes in a rainbow of colours. Simply slice and season. Then allow them to sit so their sweet-tart-salty tomato juices form a perfect little dressing.

And then there’s the millet. Simply cooked and then upgraded with a handful of chopped cilantro and a huge squeeze of lime juice! So light and refreshing. Millet makes a delicious change from quinoa or rice when you want something new on your plate. And finally we come to the best part of all: spicy chickpeas! We’ve already tried a version before in my Mango Salsa and Crispy Chickpea Quinoa Bowls and these ones take the same basic formula and add a little bit of punch! Don’t worry, if you don’t like things spicy you can dial down the chili powder, or even leave it out completely. Now the secret to non-soggy chickpeas is this magic forumla: Dry chickpeas + olive oil + sheet pan + 200C (400F) x 25 minutes = crispy chickpeas! The only math you’ll need to take chickpeas from filling to fabulous!

Once the components are complete, which will take approximately 30 minutes, you plate everything up, take a shot for Instagram (don’t forget to tag me @achatwin) and then dig in! 

Spicy Chickpea Millet Bowls

gluten free | vegan | serves 2-3 heartily
note: feel free to decrease the amount of chili powder or leave it out entirely

Ingredients

For the millet

• 1 cup uncooked millet
• 2 cups low sodium vegetable stock
• Large handful coriander, chopped
• Juice of 1 lime

For the chickpeas

• 1 1/2 cups chickpeas (about a 400 gram tin)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

For the tomatoes

• 2 cups cherry/grape tomatoes, halved
• Salt and pepper to taste

To serve

• Lettuce
• 1 avocado, thinly sliced
• Other options: tortilla chips, corn, sour cream

Method

1. Preheat your oven to 200C (400F).
2. Rinse the millet well and place in a small saucepan with the vegetable stock. Bring to the boil, fit with the saucepan lid, lower the heat to a simmer and cook for 15 minutes. After this time remove the saucepan from the heat and allow the millet to cool to room temperature.
3. While the millet is cooking, make the crispy chickpeas. Dry chickpeas very well between two layers of paper towels. Place on a clean, unlined baking tray. Sprinkle with olive oil, salt and pepper. Roll chickpeas around to coat with oil and salt and pepper.
4. Bake chickpeas in the oven for 30 minutes. Shake the pan every 10 minutes so that everything bakes evenly.
5. While the chickpeas are cooking, mix together the remaining spices in a small bowl. Once the chickpeas are cooked, remove from oven, place in the bowl with the spices and shake well. Spread out over the still warm tray and allow to sit at room temperature until serving.
6. While the chickpeas are cooking, mix together the halved tomatoes, and salt and pepper to taste. Allow to sit in their juices until serving.
7. When you are ready to serve, mix together the cooled millet, chopped coriander and lime juice.
8. To serve. Place some lettuce leaves in your bowls. Add a scoop of millet, a generous serving of tomatoes (and their precious juices), a few slices of avocado, and a sprinkling of crispy chickpeas. Enjoy!