chickpea & chorizo casseroles

August 22nd, 2008 | Filed under: entree, recipe | Tags: bread, cheese, chickpeas, chorizo, gruyerechickpea & chorizo casseroles

I should just rename this site The Chorizo Blog. I know I should stop, but I cannot help myself. Chorizo keeps well and is always there when I’ve run out of groceries, am too lazy to get more, but still want something delicious for dinner. Besides, Tom is obsessed with it and showers me with endless praise whenever I make anything with chorizo in it. Who doesn’t want that?

This week, I simmered a few links of it in some dry, sparkling cider. As the chorizo cooks, it absorbs the liquid and plumps up, losing all of its firm texture and becoming a lot more like the fresh sausage it started its life as. (Ending in a preposition. I know, I know. It’s Friday, so I’m allowed.) The chorizo also absorbs the cider’s sugar, making it savory, sweet and so deliciously addictive.

I added cider-spiked chorizo to some sauteed onions and chickpeas, then tossed everything with some pieces of crusty bread. In keeping with the sweet/salty theme (and because it’s all I had, really) I used a cranberry walnut bread. Everything is bathed in an egg mixture, topped with Gruyere and baked until crisp on the outside and chewy on the inside.

This casserole feels homey and indulgent and comes together relatively quickly. The hardest part is waiting for it to come out of the oven.

 

Chickpea & Chorizo Casseroles

4 links Spanish chorizo
4 cups sparkling apple cider (or same amount unsweetened apple juice)
1.5 tbsp. olive oil
2 small yellow onions, chopped
4 cups chickpeas
10 slices of crusty bread (I used cranberry walnut bread and it was amazing), cut into large chunks
4 eggs
1.5 cups milk (I used skim)
1 cup chicken stock
pinch salt
8 oz. Gruyere, shredded

Preheat the oven to 400° and grease your favorite casserole dish (I used 4 individual-sized dishes).

Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add the chorizos and cider. Simmer for 20 – 30 minutes, or until the chorizo plumps up ad absorbs the liquid. Remove from the pan and set aside. The texture should become more like fresh sausage. You can do this in advance, or make a large batch and freeze the rest for future use.

Add the olive oil to the skillet and sautee the onions. Once they’re almost translucent, add the chickpeas. Cook for 5 minutes. While the onions and chickpeas are cooking, chop the chorizo, then add them to the pan. Add the the bread and give everything a big stir, then pour the mixture into your prepared casserole dish.

Whisk the eggs, milk, stock and salt together then pour over the casserole dish, making sure everything is evenly coated. Top with the cheese and bake for 40 minutes, or until the middle is set and the cheese is browned and bubbly.

Serve with a green salad.

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23 Comments

23 Comments on “chickpea & chorizo casseroles”

  1. 1lekkercraft said at 11:42 am on August 22nd, 2008:I want to sit down after work, with that platter on my lap, and watch Jeapordy. It sounds delicious.
  2. 2mel said at 3:26 pm on August 22nd, 2008:Thanks lekkercraft! I wish I had leftovers sooo bad!
  3. 3[eatingclub] vancouver || js said at 11:54 pm on August 22nd, 2008:Genius! Simmering the chorizo in cider: I have to try that soon.
  4. 4Erinn@SundayDish said at 11:59 am on August 23rd, 2008:Awesome flavor combos. Sounds really yummy.
  5. 5Amanda said at 9:59 pm on August 23rd, 2008:I’m sad to say that I have never made cassoulet in my life. I know, cue the boos. But once winter hits California, I’m gonna make myself my first batch.
  6. 6Giff said at 11:25 am on August 24th, 2008:Great name for a blog 🙂 I loved that song. This is a great looking recipe. Can’t wait to try it this fall.
  7. 7Rebecca (Foodie With Family) said at 3:45 pm on August 24th, 2008:That sounds AMAZING. I’m thinking it’ll be wonderful after picking pumpkins and apples. Thanks for the great idea.
  8. 8brilynn said at 8:33 pm on August 24th, 2008:Chorizo is a welcome addition anytime, this looks awesome!
  9. 9diva said at 12:38 am on August 25th, 2008:all i can say is WOW. i think i’m in love with this casserole. it sounds like a very chilled-out meal. definitely will do this sometime when the mates are round. x
  10. 10Fearless Kitchen said at 8:04 am on August 25th, 2008:This looks amazing. I love chorizo too, but I’ve never tried cooking it up with cider. I’ll have to give it a try sometime soon!
  11. 11mel said at 10:39 am on August 25th, 2008:Thanks everyone! Chorizo in cider is a typical Spanish tapa. So good on its own or in something like this.
  12. 12OneShotBeyond said at 9:28 am on August 26th, 2008:this is making my tummy growl for it! And I’m stuck with apple oatmeal. Eeeeeeeeeeeeek!
  13. 13Helen said at 10:26 am on August 28th, 2008:Oh my goodness. As a MASSIVE fan of chorizo myself (ate it last night and eating it again tonight) – I adore the idea of cooking it in cider. I haven’t even tried it yet and I adore it.
  14. 14Texas Deb said at 12:49 pm on August 28th, 2008:Mel- your dishes are awesome. I am blogging about fixing this for dinner tonight. Chorizo is one of the few things that can get me to turn the oven on in this heat. Thanks so much for the recipe!
  15. 15mel said at 3:05 pm on August 28th, 2008:Helen – I can’t get enough of it!Deb – Thanks 🙂 And I hope it cools down there soon. We’re being stifled by the humidity down here, but thank God we have central a/c.
  16. 16Kevin said at 5:43 am on August 29th, 2008:This sounds like an easy and tasty meal!
  17. 17Hillary said at 9:56 am on September 17th, 2008:I never would have though to combine these ingredients in a casserole but it sure looks AMAZING!
  18. 18Hillary said at 9:57 am on September 17th, 2008:Submit it to the ultimate casserole recipe contest? 🙂
  19. 19mel said at 12:44 pm on September 17th, 2008:Hi Hillary – I’d love to enter the contest. What’s the link?
  20. 20Ngoc said at 11:14 pm on March 12th, 2009:Yum! I couldn’t find the right kind of chorizo, so I subbed some sausage. I’m definitely fascinated by the cider simmering thing – can’t wait to be able to try it.
  21. 21Saro said at 4:17 pm on September 24th, 2009:You are a woman after my own heart. A casserole combining chorizo, chickpeas, crusty bread and gruyere is my kind of comfort food heaven. I’ll be eating the last of the leftovers tonight and I can’t wait. Since this dish is basically a strata I wonder if it could be assembled in advance, refrigerated overnight and cooked off the next day. Thanks for the delicious recipe and a new way to cook chorizo. I froze the unabsorbed cider/chorizo broth for future use as it was so good I couldn’t bear to toss it.
  22. 22Jump To Conclusions Plus Chickpea and Chorizo Casserole | The Dabble said at 10:14 am on January 6th, 2010:[…] you do as well. (Not that I know what’s best for anyone, including myself.) I am a huge fan of bitchincamero’s site. She makes food that I want to try, something not easily found on other sites. Her chickpea and […]
  23. 23Jessie said at 8:44 am on February 26th, 2010:Found you via Foodgawker–I just made this last night, and DEAR LORD, I think it’s one of the best things I’ve ever eaten. I had fresh (Mexican) chorizo, so I just took it out of the casing and browned it along with the onions. Thanks for a great recipe!!

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