Chickpea and Spinach Stew

"Tomato, golden raisins and saffron transform canned chickpeans in this sweet and savory specialty of Seville from Spanish cookbook author Janet Mendel." Recipe from Food & Wine and was one of their 30 Best Fast Recipes Ever. Recommends serving it with warm, crusty bread. You can also top it off with a spoon of brown rice or some sliced chicken breast for the meat lovers in your family. NOTE: This can also be made in a crockpot by simply adding all ingredients (except the water and oil) into the crockpot and cooking 2 hours on high.

• Ready In: 35 mins
• Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 1  cup water
• 10  ounces  Baby Spinach
• 4  large garlic cloves, crushed
• 1  teaspoon seasoning salt
• 1  pinch saffron thread
• 2  teaspoons sweet paprika
• 1⁄2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1  pinch ground cloves
• 1  pinch fresh ground pepper
• 2 (15 ounce) cans chickpeas, with their liquid
• 1⁄4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1  small onion, finely chopped
• 1  large tomatoes, peeled and coarsely chopped (you may substitute a small can of diced tomatoes of you like)
• 1⁄2 cup golden raisin

Directions

1. Pour the water into a large deep skillet and bring to a boil.
2. Add the spinach leaves and cook over high heat, tossing frequently, until wilted, about 2 minutes. Drain the spinach in a colander, pressing hard on the leaves to extract the liquid. Coarsely chop the spinach.
3. Using the flat side of a large knife, mash the garlic to a paste with salt and saffron. Transfer the garlic paste to a small bowl. Add the paprika, cumin, cloves and black pepper and mash until combined. Stir in 1/4 cup of the chickpea liquid.
4. Wipe out the skillet. Add 2 tablespoons of the olive oil to the skillet and heat until shimmering. Add the onion and tomato and cook over moderately high heat, stirring occasionally, until they are softened, about 3 minutes. Add the spiced garlic sauce to the onion and tomato in the skillet and cook for 1 minute.
5. Add the chickpeas and the remaining liquid to the skillet. Add the raisins and bring to a boil over moderately high heat. Add the spinach, reduce the heat to moderate, and simmer for 15 minutes. Transfer the chickpea stew to 4 deep bowls, drizzle the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil on top, and serve.