Using food bank staples, such as chickpeas, pasta and canned tomatoes, I’ve created a hearty and satisfying vegetarian meal. This post is in support of Purolator’s Tackle Hunger Campaign. I have been compensated for my time, all opinions are my own.
At the beginning of September, I spent the afternoon at the Regina Food Bank with two players from the Saskatchewan Roughriders – AC Leonard and Charleston Hughes. We were given a tour of the facility, all the while learning about what the Food Bank does for our community. The Regina Food Bank receives around 9000 requests for food each month, and 47% of those served are children. At this time of year, they start to see their supply dwindle, so the Purolator Tackle Hunger campaign comes at the perfect time.
Purolator is committed to helping alleviate hunger in the communities where it operates. As part of this commitment, Purolator works closely with its employees, customers, partners, Canadians and food banks across Canada to collect donations and help raise awareness about the issue of hunger in Canada.
Since its inception in 2003, Purolator’s Tackle Hunger campaign has helped deliver the equivalent of more than 12 million pounds of food to food banks across Canada. September 14th was the Saskatchewan Roughrider Tackle Hunger Game Day, and thanks to the generosity of our community, they raised 32.000 lbs of food!
During our tour of the Regina Food Bank, I had the opportunity to speak with Charleston Hughes and AC Leonard about some of their favourite foods and what they eat during the season. Charleston commented that he was a fan of Taco Tuesday, and AC Leonard enjoys pasta (but really, who doesn’t?) which is what inspired this dish.
Using food bank staples, such as chickpeas, pasta and canned tomatoes, I was able to create a hearty, healthy and satisfying meal. It’s amazing how flavourful a dish with such few ingredients can be. Not only is it delicious, but it’s budget friendly, which is something all of us can appreciate. This meal proves that you don’t need expensive ingredients, or to spend hours cooking in order to have a delicious dish to serve your family. To keep this meal inexpensive, I used a store-bought package of taco seasoning, because honestly, it’s cheaper to buy it pre-made, instead of buying a handful of spices individually to make it. However, if you prefer your own homemade seasoning blend, by all means, use it! If you’re looking for a great recipe to make your own taco seasoning blend, check out this post from my friend Bernice at Dish’n the Kitchen.
Taco Chickpea Pasta
Ingredients
- 8 oz penne pasta or pasta of choice
- canola oil
- 1 398 ml can chickpeas drained
- 1/2 cup chopped yellow onion
- 1/2 small red pepper sliced
- 1/2 small green pepper sliced
- 1 35 g taco seasoning packet
- 1 796 ml can crushed tomatoes
- 1 cup water
- salt and pepper to taste
- cheese for serving optional
Instructions
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Cook the pasta according to package directions. Drain and set aside.
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Meanwhile, in a large saucepan over medium heat, add enough canola oil to lightly cover the bottom of the pan.
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Add chickpeas, onion, and the red and green peppers. Saute until onions are soft and translucent.
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Mix in the taco seasoning packet, crushed tomatoes and water. Simmer for about 15 minutes, or until the sauce has reduced and thickened. Salt and pepper to taste.
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Add in the cooked pasta and stir to combine. Serve with grated cheddar or mozzarella cheese if desired. Also great baked with cheese!
Love this Nicole! You really can almost make this entire dish from food bank donations! Also, isn’t it funny how inspiration strikes? Sometimes you just have to listen and the ideas are right there.
Such a great cause! You’ve created a recipe using common food bank donations that tastes delicious, too!
This is such a great recipe! I love the protein, that it’s inexpensive, it’s vegetarian and my kids love tacos so it’s a great family pleasing recipe! Well done 🙂
love this recipe idea and the cause you are supporting we all need to help in this as much as we can
An easy, quick, nutritious, delicious pasta dish that is also budget-friendly. Love it!
This is so wonderful! I think it’s so important to have easy, quick recipes available that are also budget friendly and can be made from ingredients that are commonly given to food banks. So many times you see recipes that use these ingredients but are either labour intensive or not that flavourful. Thanks for sharing this yummy recipe and for what you do for the community!