How to cook chickpeas
First method: Traditional
1. Soak dry chickpeas overnight (10 to 12 hours) in fresh water with half a teaspoon soda.
* If you don't like to use soda, you can replace it with some coarse salt, but it's easier with soda.
2. Drain and rinse the chickpeas thoroughly.
3. Bring water to a boil in a large pot.
* If your tap water contains a lot of chlorine or it is heavily processed, use bottled water, because the chick peas might not get tender.
* Try to start with enough water, but if you have to add more, use boiling water.
4. When it begins to boil, turn down heat to low and cook for two hours.
* It is essential that the chick peas boil steadily during the cooking.
5. Add the salt towards the end.
6. Remove the chick peas from heat and drain them.
Faster method: Pressure cooker
1. Drain the soaked chick peas, rinse them and place them in a pressure cooker with water to cover and salt. Usually the chick peas will be tender in about thirty minutes, but you need some experience to know the exact cooking time.
SAGNE E CECI
Emmer Wheat/ Spelt Pasta soup with chick peas and rosemary
( for 4 people)
PASTA DOUGH:
Ingredients:
* 1 kg Plain Flour/mixed with emmer wheat/spelt flour
* 2 eggs
* 1 small glass of water
* pinch of salt
Preparation:
* Sift flour on the table and make a well in the centre.
* Crack eggs in the centre and with a fork, blend the egg into the flour.
* Knead until dough is smooth and soft.
* Rest the dough for half hour – cover with teatowel/ bowl.
* Pasta Machine: cut a small piece of dough and start putting it through the pasta machine.
* Start on a wide setting eg no 1 and repeat several times, every couple of times reducing the width of the rollers to thin the pasta out.
* Do not go to the very last setting eg No 5 as it will be too thin to handle.
* Cut pasta sheets into suitable lengths and then cut into small strips with a knife.
* Place each lot of cut pasta on a floured board and separate strands to avoid sticking.
SAUCE
* Fry olive oil and 1 onion, add 100 gr pancetta
* Brown the meat and season with salt and pepper
* Add sprig of rosemary.
Preparation:
* Boil pot of salted water.
* Add pasta.
* When the pasta starts to rise after several mins and come to the surface several times ( can taste the pasta to see it cooked), then add the can of drained chick peas to the pasta pot to warm through.
* Drain the pasta ( retain some of the pasta water for the soup).
* Add the pasta and chick peas to the pancetta and onion in a pot and then add back the necessary pasta water to make a soup consistency.
* Season with salt, pepper and chilli (optional).
These information come from AbsolutelyAbruzzo.com