As I've said before, I like to try new foods. So when I came across fresh chickpeas, I couldn't pass them up. I never even knew that the chick peas I know and love and eat all the time, originally look like this:

A quick google search turned up a bunch of ideas that sounded delicious, like this one from Bon Appetit and this one from Epicurious and this one on Yum Sugar. For my first foray into fresh chickpea land, I decided to try them sautéed and eaten from the shell like edamame, as I found on Bon Appetit. I tossed 1/2 pound of them in a bowl with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and then added them to a pan on medium-high heat for about 2-3 minutes, when little brown crispy spots appeared on the pods.

Meanwhile, I added 2 teaspoons of cumin seeds to a hot frying pan and toasted them until they became fragrant. When those cooled, I added them to the rest of my spice mix, which included 2 teaspoons of each: salt, cayenne pepper and granulated garlic.

Once the chickpeas were done, I tossed them with the spice mix and served immediately.

My husband and I agreed that these would be easier to eat if the pods were sturdier, like edamame. But they were tasty nonetheless. I probably wouldn't make them this way again but I'm certainly eager to keep experimenting with fresh chickpeas.