When Worlds Collide

Keep in mind that this Italy/India inspired bowl, like most of my One Bowl Wonders, has a lot of flexibility to make it work for your tastes! You could swap pasta, polenta or potatoes for the brown rice I used. Or, you could swap sautéed, diced chicken for the garbanzo beans. Squeezing a lemon over this at the end would add an acidic brightness to the flavors too!

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoon ghee or extra virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon turmeric
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic (3-4 cloves)
• ½ to 1 teaspoon of red pepper flakes depending on how much you like heat
• ½ teaspoon cumin
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 cup yellow split peas
• 1 32oz carton of broth – use bone broth (for more protein), vegetable or chicken
• 1 14.5oz can of diced tomatoes (I love Muir Glen)
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1 ½ tsp sea salt
• 1 15oz can of garbanzo beans, rinsed
• Clamshell of super greens (optional)
• ½ bunch of Italian parsley (more Italian) or cilantro (more Indian), chopped
• Parmesan or pecorino romano cheese (optional)

Instructions:

1. Prepare your base (rice, pasta, polenta) separately per package directions while the rest cooks.
2. Heat ghee or EVOO, turmeric, garlic, red pepper and cumin in a large soup pot over medium heat just until fragrant.
3. Add the yellow split peas and bay leaf.
4. Add the carton of broth, can of tomatoes and tomato paste
5. Add the salt
6. Bring to a strong simmer for 30 minutes. If split peas are soft enough, remove from heat temporarily and use an immersion blender to crush about half of the split peas to add thickness. If they aren’t soft enough, cook another 5-10 minutes until they are. If you don’t have an immersion blender, you can skip this step.
7. Add the can of garbanzo beans, decrease heat to medium low and simmer about another 10 minutes.
8. For the last 3 minutes, dump a clamshell of greens into the pot if using, stir to combine and cover to let the greens wilt.
9. Check your seasoning and add salt as needed.
10. Top with parsley or cilantro and grated cheese if using