TOO-LATE-TO-COOK SUPPER

Sometimes it’s too late to cook supper, but I need to cook. For me, it’s the ultimate wind-down from a busy day.

So I do something special. Special, but quick.

Here’s my latest Too-Late-to-Cook Supper:

Rinse a couple 15-ounce cans of Goya chickpeas (garbanzos) in cold water. Put them in a pot with 1 cup of good-quality chicken stock or broth (if I don’t have homemade on hand, I use Pacific Organic Chicken Broth) and bring to a boil for a couple of minutes, stirring and reducing the broth to more of a thick syrup in the process. Squirt in the juice from 1 or 2 fresh lemons. Reduce the heat to very, very low and let sit while you do the next thing.

Which is cook shrimp. Chop 3 to 4 cloves of garlic and add them to a skillet filmed with good-quality olive oil and set over medium heat. When the garlic turns light golden brown, add a pound to a pound-and-a-half of large shrimp. If you want a shrimp-filled supper, add the max; if you prefer a more bean-y dinner, go minimum. Saute the shrimp over medium-high heat for 2 minutes, then remove from the heat and stir in a big fistful, about 1 cup, of freshly chopped flat-leaf parsley leaves. Do not use the curly kind; flat-leaf is far tastier.

Place the beans in a serving bowl and add the sautéed shrimp, making sure you scrape into the mix all the good garlicky oil. Season with sea salt and black pepper and serve right away. Feel free to add another squirt of fresh lemon juice and/or another drizzle of olive oil. This serves about 3.

cheers,
Andy
3.22.07