Lemony Chickpea and Vegetable Stir-fry

In general, stir-fries are great because they come together fairly quickly and can be loaded with vegetables and protein.  Usually when I think of stir-fries I think of Asian flavors, so I was intrigued when I came across this Lemony Chickpea Stir-fry on 101 Cookbooks.  I was pleasantly surprised to find that this meal is not only quick to prepare and healthy, but also tasty and different.  I love the lemon flavor.  I think it really makes the meal and prevents it from just being a mix of random ingredients.

In the past I have served this with carrot sticks and a roll or slice of bread on the side.  As written, this would  very generously serve 2, as it is pretty dense with all of the tofu and chickpeas.  Depending on who is eating and what you serve with it, you could definitely make the meal serve 4.  I've never served it over rice like a traditional stir-fry, but I bet that would be good.  If I were to do that I might try seasoning the rice with extra lemon juice, lemon zest, and spices in order to enhance its flavor as this stir-fry doesn't have a sauce in the same way that most stir-fries do.

Ultimately, this is a great quick and healthy meal that I'm glad I found!

Lemony Chickpea and Vegetable Stir-fry

Serves: 2-4

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 2-3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 can of chickpeas, rinsed (or 1.5 cups cooked chickpeas)
• 12 ounces of extra firm tofu, cut into small cubes
• 3 cups chopped kale
• 2 small zucchini, chopped
• zest and juice from 1 lemon
• black pepper 
• crushed red pepper flakes

DIRECTIONS:

1)  Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large nonstick skillet or cast iron skillet.  Once hot, add salt, onion, garlic and chickpeas.  Stir-fry for about five minutes (stir often), until chickpeas are browned in spots.

2)  Add tofu and cook until heated through, about 2 minutes.

3)  Add kale and stir until kale is wilted (keep moving uncooked kale to bottom of the pan).  This will take about 2-3 minutes.

4) Remove everything from the skillet to a bowl and set aside.

5)  Heat second tablespoon of olive oil in skillet.  Add zucchini and cook until brown, about 3 minutes.

6)  Add chickpea mixture back into skillet along with lemon juice and zest.  Mix to combine.

7)  Taste and season with black pepper and/or crushed red pepper flakes to taste, if desired.

8) Serve on its own, or with bread and carrot sticks (as I did most recently!).

(recipe adapted from 101 Cookbooks)