I am on a vegetarian kick, always. I probably eat vegetarian about five nights a week and the rest of the times, I’ll sprinkle in fish and chicken. This is my favorite super quick vegetarian meal, as of late. It requires a good amount of pantry items and is so delicious and cozy without feeling heavy or super filling.

It starts with a can of tomatoes, some water and a chipotle in adobo going in the blender. Chipotles in adobo add so much flavor to anything. You get so much bang for your buck. The one thing is that it always feels like a bummer to open a whole can and only use one. I save them in a ziplock bag in the fridge and pull them out whenever I want to use one.

A can of chickpeas are added to the pot, along with the spicy tomato sauce and a big handful of chopped kale and a few pinches of salt. After it braises for a few minutes, I add a few slices of cumin-dusted eggplant. Boom—dinner!

So simple and healthy. I like to top this with a sprinkling of chopped cilantro and cotija cheese. Enjoy!

Eggplant on Braised Chickpeas

This eggplant on braised chickpeas requires a good amount of pantry items and is delicious and cozy without feeling super filling. (Recipe Credit: Adrianna Adarme of Fresh Tastes)

Ingredients

• 1 (15-ounce) can of tomatoes
• 1 cup of water
• 1 chipotle in adobo
• 1 (15-ounce) can of garbanzo beans, rinsed
• 1 bunch of kale, ends trimmed and chopped
• Salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 eggplant, trimmed and sliced horizontally
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/4 cup crumbled cotija cheese
• 1 tablespoon minced cilantro

Directions

1. To a blender, add the can of tomatoes, water and chipotle in adobo. Blend until very smooth. Pour into a medium skillet, set over medium heat, along with the garbanzo beans, kale and a few pinches of salt. Bring to a gentle simmer and cover, cooking for about 15 to 20 minutes. Give it a taste and adjust the salt to your liking. I added a few more liberal pinches of salt.
2. Sprinkle the eggplant slices with a few pinches of cumin. To a medium skillet, set over medium heat, add the olive oil. When the oil is hot, add the sliced eggplant and cook on both sides for about 2 to 3 minutes. Sprinkle with salt and transfer on top of the garbanzo beans. Repeat until you’ve cooked all of the eggplant.
3. Garnish the dish with the minced cilantro and cotija cheese.

Yield: Serves 4

Adrianna Adarme is a food blogger and author living in Los Angeles, California. She writes the blog A Cozy Kitchen, where she shares comforting, everyday recipes from her kitchen. She recently authored her first cookbook, PANCAKES: 72 Sweet and Savory Recipes for the Perfect Stack. She’s a lover of breakfast, pie (and sometimes even pie for breakfast), corgis and cute things. You can find her on Twitter, Instagram, or Facebook.