http://www.lawrence.com/users/photos/2014/may/07/272996/

All winter long, it seems, I made curry. Thai curry, to be exact. I wrote about a few of them in this space. They were hearty and often served over sweet potatoes for extra nutrition, because I’m a little weird like that.

And I may be one of the luckiest foodies on the planet, because I was just gifted a perfect Indian curry recipe for summer.

One of my friends, Paffi, and I met for lunch the other day, and she brought with her a shopping bag. I was kind of oblivious, and just figured she’d gone on a grocery trip before lunch and didn’t want to leave whatever she’d bought in a hot car while we ate.

Turns out, the bag was for me.

Inside was a recipe for chickpea curry we’d talked about quite awhile ago, and ALL the ingredients I needed to make it.

Have I mentioned I have awesome friends?

Well, I do. And I had to make Paffi’s chickpea curry ASAP. We made it Sunday night, and not only was it super fast (the rice took longer to cook than the curry itself), it was also light and fresh and perfect for summer.

The curry features fresh Roma tomatoes and onion — two things we’ll have in season at the same time shortly — plus curry powder, and that was pretty much it. A little oil, a little cumin, and a whole lot of fresh, light flavor. This is not your winter curry. And the chickpeas make it super hearty.

Honestly, I can’t wait until the tomatoes and onions both are either from my garden, my CSA share, or the Lawrence Farmers’ Market.

Chickpea Curry

1 medium onion, diced

5 Roma tomatoes, diced

1 can chickpeas, rinsed and drained

1 cup water (as needed)

Vegetable oil to saute (we used coconut oil)

1 teaspoon Deep curry powder (can be found at Indian food stores)

Salt

Cayenne powder to taste (optional)

¼ teaspoon cumin powder (optional)

2 cups cooked basmati rice

Naan

Heat oil in pan over medium heat. Add onions. Sprinkle salt to sweat the onions. Saute until translucent.

Add chickpeas and stir to incorporate into onions. Add curry powder and, if using, add cayenne and cumin. Cook for a minute, stirring constantly.

Stir in tomatoes and then add enough water to wet the bottom of the pan and scrape any caramelization.

Continue to cook and stir until the curry comes to a boil. Cover the pan. Lower heat and simmer for 7 minutes. Remove from heat.

Add salt to taste and serve over rice or eat with naan. Serves 4.