My parents sent me this recipe recently as a new page for a cookbook they made me when I moved out of the dorms for my junior year of college. The cookbook is one of the best, most personal gifts I’ve ever received – my dad sent pages to all my extended family so that they could contribute their own favorites. The best pages, though, are the many pages that my dad, who is extremely creative, made himself: complete with pictures of the family eating the dish (taken over the course of many weeks, no doubt), funny comments, and drawings. Anyway, these days, my parents make new pages and send them to me whenever they make a recipe that they deem essential for my collection. I received this one in the spring and have already made it 3 times – a feat for someone like me who rarely makes repeat recipes, simply because I am always excited to try something new. This dish contains 3 of my favorite things – spicy Italian sausage, chickpeas, and spinach. And, it’s super easy and quick to make! Yay.
ingredients
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 large garlic clove, minced
½ large onion, diced
1 lb. hot Italian sausage (I have tried it with both turkey and pork versions, and the turkey will work, but the pork is preferable because the texture is better in the finished stew)
1 Tbsp. tomato paste
2 cups chicken broth
1 can chickpeas, rinsed and drained (I think Goya brand is the best – they’re always firm and never mushy)
2 large handfuls fresh baby spinach
6 slices toasted garlic bread, prepared by brushing French or Italian bread with olive oil, toasting at 400 degrees on a baking sheet until crusty, and rubbing hot bread with a halved raw garlic clove.
Grated parmesan for sprinkling on top
directions
1. Heat oil in a large sauté pan with high sides (or a Dutch oven) over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add onion and sausage, and crumble sausage. When sausage is about half done, add the garlic. Sauté until sausage is browned and cooked through.
2. Stir in the tomato paste to coat, and cook 2 more minutes.
3. Add broth and chickpeas and bring the mixture to a boil. Add freshly ground black pepper. Reduce heat to medium-low to simmer, and continue to simmer for 5 minutes.
4. Add spinach and cover pan briefly to wilt spinach – about 1 minute.
5. Place a slice of garlic bread on the bottom of each bowl and ladle stew on top. Sprinkle with parmesan and serve.
