In the past chickpeas were used to cure warts

At some stage it was believed that you could cure warts by touching it to a chickpea plant at new moon.  So unless you are related to Harry Potter or Liewe Heksie, I suggest you stay away from these babies.  But I did find some interesting health facts and thought it would be good information while preparing this salad.

Chickpeas are a helpful source of zinc, folate and protein.  They are also very high in dietary fibre and hence a healthy source of carbohydrates for persons with insulin sensitivity or diabetes. 

In short chickpeas prevents diabetes, reduce heart disease, it is low in GI (not GI-Jane) and reduces cholesterol, but if you have kidney stones you should limit your intake of chickpeas (bummer).

Chickpea, feta and coriander salad
(From Falling Cloudberries by Tessa Kiros)

400g tinned chickpeas
250ml olive oil
1 large red onion, chopped
5 garlic cloves, very finely chopped
1 or 2 red chillies, seeded and finely chopped
250g crumbled feta cheese
4 spring onions, green part only, chopped
25g chopped coriander
30g chopped parsley
Juice of 1 lemon

1. Rinse chickpeas and place them in a bowl.
2. Heat 3 tbsp olive oil and fry the red onion gently until it is cooked through and lightly golden. Add the garlic and chilli and cook for a few more seconds, until you can smell the garlic. Take care not to brown the garlic. Leave to cool completely.
3. Add the feta, spring onion, coriander, parsley and lemon juice to the chickpeas and season. Add the onion mixture and the remaining oil and mix through.