Serving Up {Sandwich}: Doubles

I have mentioned before that my husband lived in the West Indies for two years while serving a mission for our church.  While there he developed a real love for the food and has blessed me by introducing me to a great variety of delicious curries and foods that he loved so much.  Whenever I try a new "curried" recipe, no matter how much I like it, it has to pass my husband to be considered a keeper.  When I saw this recipe for Chickpea Masala Sandwiches (Doubles) in the new "Spilling the Beans" cookbook, I knew I had to try it because I have heard Rich refer to "doubles" and how he and his missionary companions would eat them in huge numbers!

Having never had a double myself, I was a bit unsure how close this recipe would be to what my husband remembered and loved.  The recipe took some time to prepare because of making my own flatbread but my husbands response, and the response of all the kids for that matter, made the time spent totally worth it.  This recipe was a hit!  I had doubled the recipe for the filling and increased the bread to 1 1/2 - it was all gone in one sitting with people asking for more!  I love it when a new food is received so well.

This recipe will definitely be a keeper in our home and I am glad to have an additional non-meat meal to add to our rotation.

One Year Ago: Coconut Syrup

CHICKPEA MASALA SANDWICHES (DOUBLES)     
(recipe from Spilling the Beans)
printable version

Flatbread:
2 cups flour
1 tsp. yeast
1 tsp. turmeric
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
3/4 cup warm water
oil, for cooking

Filling:
1 large onion, halved and thinly sliced
1 Tbs. curry powder
2 cups cooked chickpeas -or- 1 19-ounce can, rinsed and drained
3 garlic cloves, crushed
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
1 cup chicken stock (I used more)

In a large bowl, stir together the flour, yeast, turmeric, cumin, sugar and salt; add warm water and stir until the dough comes together.  On a floured surface, knead the dough for about 5 minutes until it is smooth.  Return the dough to the bowl, cover and allow to set for an hour, or until doubled in size.

To make the filling, heat a drizzle of oil in a large heavy skillet set over medium-high heat.  Saute the onion until soft.  Add the curry powder and cook an additional minute or two.  Add the chickpeas, garlic and cilantro and cook for an additional minute before adding the chicken stock.  Bring to a simmer and reduce heat, cover partially and allow to cook for about an hour, until chickpeas are very soft.  Add additional chicken stock if needed.  Can slightly mash chickpeas as they soften.

To cook the flatbreads, divide the dough into 12 balls and roll each one out very thin on a lightly floured surface - they will be about 8 inch in diameter.  Heat a generous drizzle of oil in a heavy skillet set over medium heat and cook the breads one at a time until puffed and golden (about one minute), then turn the bread over with tongues and cook the second side.  Transfer cooked bread to paper towels to cool while you cook remaining dough.

Spoon the spiced chickpeas onto the flatbreads and top with mango chutney and/or extra fresh cilantro if you would like.  Wrap and eat while hot.