Portions: 04 Preparation time: 120 minutes

Vegetarian Meatballs with Pasta, Tomato Sauce, and Olives

Ingredients:
Vegetarian Meatballs (makes about 16-18 meatballs):
– 400g soaked chickpeas (for at least 12 hours)
– 1 red onion
– 3 carrots
– 1 egg
– 1/3 cup breadcrumbs
– 5 tablespoons olive oil
– 2 garlic cloves
– 1 tablespoon powdered sweet paprika
– 1/2 can of peas (you can also add corn)
– 1/2 teaspoon each of turmeric, curry, cayenne pepper
– salt

Tomato Sauce with Olives:
– 2 cans of canned tomatoes, e.g., Pelatti
– 2 garlic cloves
– 1 onion
– olive oil
1/2 jar of chopped green olives OLE!
– Salt
– Pepper
– Freshly grated Parmesan cheese
– A handful of freshly chopped parsley
– 1 package of pasta

Instructions:
Cook soaked chickpeas in salted water for about 1.5 hours until soft. Blend into a paste. Add grated carrot, finely chopped onion, breadcrumbs, olive oil, garlic, and spices. Season to taste and add the egg at the end. Refrigerate for about 20 minutes and preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Shape moistened meatballs with wet hands and bake for about 20 minutes until browned. In the meantime, prepare the sauce. Sauté onion and garlic in olive oil. Add tomatoes. Cook pasta in salted water (pour 1/2 cup of pasta water into the tomato sauce). Season to taste. Add olives and reduce the sauce. Arrange pasta on plates, top with sauce and meatballs. Sprinkle with Parmesan and parsley.