Monday, January 11, 2016

Mediterranean Winter ChickPea Pasta Salad

Everyone enjoys a good pasta salad during the summer months when veggies are at their peak.  During the winter, tomatoes, especially, suffer from lack of taste, texture and flavor.  This is a delicious, warm pasta salad made with chickpea pasta!  If you love pasta (and who doesn't) but are trying to watch your carbs or just want to start eating healthy for the new year, this is a great recipe.  High in protein and fiber, this is a nice additional to your pantry on a night that you just need a pasta fix!  The folks at Banza sent in their "Banza Boys" to the local ShopRite to give everyone a sample of their pasta. 
Banza is a small team based in Detroit with a big goal:  To change food for the better!  By making pasta from chickpeas instead of wheat, they have discovered that pasta can be as healthy as it is delicious!



Mediterranean Winter Pasta Salad

1 8 oz. box Banza Shells
1 5 oz. clamshell Organic Baby Spinach
2/3 cup marinated artichoke hearts, roughly chopped
1/2 small red onion, chopped
1 red roasted pepper, drained and chopped
6 sun-dried tomatoes, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup marinated kalamata olives halved
1 plump clove of garlic, minced
1/4 cup liquid from marinated artichoke hearts
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 cup feta cheese crumbles
Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions:

Bring 6 inches of water to a boil in a large pot.  Salt boiling water and add pasta.  Cook according to package directions or until desired tenderness.  While pasta is cooking, roughly chop baby spinach.  Add spinach into colander where you will drain your pasta.  When pasta is cooked, drain directly over spinach to wilt slightly.  Transfer warm spinach and pasta to a large bowl.  Add artichoke hearts, onion, roasted red pepper, sun-dried tomatoes and olives and mix to combine.

In a one cup measure, combine marinade liquid, olive oil, red wine vinegar, oregano and salt and pepper to taste.  Combine with pasta mixture.  Serve warm with feta cheese crumbles.


Visit Banza to learn about the benefits of chickpeas and for more creative Banza recipes!
You can find Banza on Facebook
Twitter and Instagram
 And yes - their pasta is available nationwide at Wegmans, ShopRite, Whole Foods & Fairway- among many other retailers.



23 comments:

  1. These do sound very taasty, nice to round out a meal with. It's great you would win so many flavors to try.

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  2. Patti - Pasta from garbanzo beans - I'm in!
    Thanks,
    Dorothy

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  3. I would love to try it. I have tried pasta made from lentils recently but not chickpeas

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  4. I would love to try it because is sounds so good!

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  5. I have not seen this particular brand so I would really like to give it a try!

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  6. I would love to try this - sounds like an interesting pasta and the recipe looks so yummy! (I liked you on Facebook.)

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  7. These look really good. I've been trying to cook healthier meals and I'm excited to see what this would be like.

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  8. I have never heard of this pasta; will have to try some out from Whole Foods (or win some).
    Digicats {at} Sbcglobal {dot} Net

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  9. can hardly wait to try. sounds amazing

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  10. I'd love to win! I'm vegan so I need all the protein I can get!

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  11. ahhhhh! so cool! chickpeas are forever becoming my favorite food. chickpea tacos yesterday for dinner, and the other day i made cookies with chickpea brine as the egg replacer (apparently this has been a popular thing to do for awhile and i cannot believe i hadn't heard about it until recently). needless to say i'd be stoked to have these in my pantry :)

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  12. This is so neat, I'd never heard of chickpea pasta! Would love to try :)

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  13. I would have to say that we are pasta lovers that would really love this for sure
    facebook.com/trabajardd

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  14. Wow I love this and what a great idea!.. Because of weight and health issues I have be trying to eat healthier.. And chickpeas are so good!!

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  15. There are so many good things you can make with pasta!

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  16. I would love to try this pasta..i love chickpeas and I need to eat healthier this year, this would be perfect
    (cricketlady29@hotmail.com)

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  17. This is a great giveaway. Would love to try this!

    julimi at aol dot com

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  18. Thanks for the chance, I would love to try them! :)

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  19. Your giveaway looks great. I can think of many recipes for the pasta and would love to try your product!

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