Chickpeas Cooked With Spinach And Cod
THE CHICKPEA-SPINACH CONNECTION
Chickpeas and spinach cooked together are a combination found throughout the entire Mediterranean, in all traditions – Christian, Judaic, and Muslim. Indeed, here in Greece, there are a few very old recipes (chickpeas are, in fact, one of the oldest cultivated legumes, endemic, to the Eastern Mediterranean) from the traditions of the Romaniote Jews, who settled in Greece during Roman times. Some of those recipes morphed into pan-norther-Greek specialties; this one takes its inspiration for a classic Spanish dish, evinced by the addition of cod.
PREP TIME 15 minutes
COOK TIME 1 hour
SERVES 4
Ingredients
- 3 cups of cooked canned chickpeas
- 1 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 large onions finely chopped
- 1 large leek trimmed and finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves finely chopped
- 1 kilo 2 lbs. fresh spinach, trimmed, chopped and washed
- 6 large firm, ripe tomatoes, coarsely chopped
- 2 fillets of fresh cod
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
- Juice of 1 lemon or more, to taste
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 180˚C /(360˚F).
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Heat three tablespoons of olive oil and sauté the onions, leek and garlic in a skillet over medium heat just until soft. Remove and set aside. Sauté the spinach over high heat in the same skillet, in batches, just to reduce some of its volume. Remove and set aside.
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In a large, preferably clay, baking dish, combine the chickpeas, spinach, onion mixture, tomatoes, salt, pepper, and a little warm water, enough to barely cover the contents of the pan. Stir in half the remaining olive oil. Bake uncovered for about 20 minutes to half an hour, until most of the liquid in the pan has been absorbed.
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Remove from oven, and stir in cod fillets, the remaining olive oil and lemon juice. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the cod is opaque and flakes easily with a fork. Adjust seasoning for salt and pepper. Serve, either warm or at room temperature.