Indian Spiced Creamy Avocado Chickpeas

Yesterday was a fantastic day! What made it so fantastic? Well, in honor of the brave men and women who serve our country, I decided to conquer when of my fears…. I painted!

I have always been a lover of art. GF Guy and I love going to art museums, galleries, and art festivals. It has always been a dream of ours to collect original works of art. We took our first step in that direction in November when we purchased 2 large photographs of Spanish street scenes that we fell in love with at an art festival. They were our first big art purchase and we love them!
That being said, I have always considered myself to be “art retarded” and unable to trace a circle. I tried painting once when I was young and immediately became discouraged because my tree didn’t look exactly like the tree I was attempting to recreate. So… I quit. I refused to even attempt my hand at painting again.

That has always been a pattern with me. If I didn’t immediately excel at something I quit. I was too scared of failure, of not being perfect.
One thing I have been working toward these past 6 months has been accepting my imperfections, loving them, and releasing my fears. All fear does is hold you back from greatness, be it in life, work, or simply great joy.
As a part of my “therapy”, I am releasing my fear and challenging myself to revisit all those things I “failed at” as a child and to accept where I am in these endeavors. Yesterday, it was painting. A friend and I set out a table in her backyard, soaked up the sunshine, chatted, sipped wine, and painted. We laughed and simply enjoyed the creative process.

So you see, my painting represents far more to me than just artistic expression. It represents conquering my fears and living life to the fullest!

Speaking of full…. my dinner was pretty fulfilling, too! While not the most photogenic, the combination of spices and cool, creamy avocado made this dish I stand-out, flavor packed winner!

Indian Spiced Creamy Avocado Chickpeas

(Gluten Free, Dairy Free, Vegan)

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup Dried Garbanzo Beans, soaked overnight and drained
• 1 Bay Leaf
• 1/2 Yellow Onion, diced
• 1/4 cup Dry Sherry
• 1/2 cup Water, as needed
• 1/2 tsp Cinnamon
• 1 tsp Curry Powder
• 1/2 tsp Sweet Paprika
• 1/4 tsp Cloves
• 2 cloves Garlic, minced
• 1 Tbsp Tomato Paste
• 1/2 Avocado, mashed
• 1/4 tsp Lemon Juice
• 1 tsp dried Cilantro
• 2 large handfuls Baby Spinach

Directions:

1. Place soaked chickpeas and bay leaf in a saucepan and cover with 2 inches of water.
2. Bring water to a boil, reduce heat to medium, cover, and simmer for one hour, or until chickpeas are tender. Drain.
3. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, mash the avocado and stir in the lemon juice. Set aside.
4. In a large skillet, saute’ onion until soft and translucent. Add spices and cook about 1 minute until fragrant.
5. Add the garlic and saute’ a minute more.
6. Deglaze the pan with sherry and stir in the tomato paste.
7. Stir in the chickpeas and mashed avocado. Add water to thin, as needed.
8. Season with salt and pepper.
9. Add the cilantro and spinach and cook until spinach is wilted.
10. Serve in a baked sweet potato.

This post is linked to Gluten Free Wednesdays at the Gluten Free Homemaker.

This post is also linked to Friday Foodie Fix and Diane’s The Whole Gang.

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