In a town 30 minutes northwest of Tampa lies Tarpon Springs, a lively coastal town tucked away in Tampa Bay. Its waterways made it a landing place for sponge harvesting and shrimping. Up until the late 1800’s sponging was being done on boats with long poles stabbing blindly and pulling them up to the surface. But Greeks off the coast of the Dodecanese Islands had learned how to dive for sponges and in the early 1900’s this technique was brought to Tarpon Springs along with the Greek divers. The sponge economy boomed. Tarpon Springs became one of the largest Greek settlements in the US and as a result incredible authentic restaurants and bakeries are still here today. On my last visit we had lunch at a waterfront restaurant and ordered the Greek braised chickpeas. I knew I had to add these to the rotation when I got home.

The dish is typically a side dish but adding it to a charcuterie board with Labneh and honey is perfect. Its also great over rice and surprisingly even good cold which makes this dish a must have to graze on through out the week. This freezes well, so for a recipe that takes only 30 minutes from start to finish, double it and have something ready the next time you have company.

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup virgin olive oil, plus more to serve
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1/4 c dry red wine
• 2 15 1/2 ounce cans chickpeas, drained
• 1 pint of tomato sauce
• 3 medium garlic cloves, thinly sliced.
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 teaspoon of dried oregano
• 1 sprig of rosemary
• 2 sprigs fresh red oregano
• 1 teaspoon grated orange zest
• 1/4 cup orange juice
• salt and pepper
• 1/2 cup lightly packed fresh flat-leafed parsley, chopped

Instructions:

1. In a large Dutch oven over medium heat, combine oil, tomato paste, onion, and 1 tablespoon of honey.  Cook, stirring often about 6 to 7 minutes. 
2. deglaze with wine
3. Stir in the bay, rosemary, oregano, orange juice.  Bring to a simmer, then cover and cook over medium-low, stirring occasionally, until the onion has softened, 8 to 10 minutes.
4. Stir in chickpeas, tomato sauce and salt and pepper as needed. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat and cook, stirring occasionally, until the liquid has evaporated, 10 to 12 minutes.
5. Remove from the heat. Taste and season with salt and pepper.  Stir in the orange zest. 
6. Transfer to a serving dish.  Sprinkle with parsley, then drizzle with the remaining tablespoon of honey and additional oil.

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