Super Quick Smoky Chic Peas & Wilted Greens with Goat Cheese

Have I ever mentioned my love affair with smoked paprika, aka pimenton? I use it so often, in so many ways. Love, love, love that smoky goodness, in bean dishes, soups, stews, marinades. And these little cans that it comes in are great for storing pencils & pens when the can is empty, as an added bonus!

My love of paprika grows ever deeper on a night like tonight, when a little dash of it is added to a meal that took all of about ten minutes to make, and was thoroughly satisfying. Win-win!

You can make this with any kind of beans you have around, and any kind of greens too. If you happen to have creamy goat cheese around too, by all means, invite it to the party.

First, just mince some garlic and saute' it in a bit of olive oil over medium heat for a few minutes.

Next, add the chic peas...a cup or two if you've made them from scratch, or a whole can, rinsed & well drained, which is what I happened to have on hand tonight. Add a sprinkling of salt & pinch of crushed red pepper and cook for a few minutes, shaking the pan a couple of times. And then, add a little sprinkling, or a big sprinkling if you like, of smoked paprika. Stir to incorporate, and stop to appreciate just how delightful the kitchen is smelling right about now.

Now it's time to toss in your greens - I used a bunch of wild baby arugula. You could also use spinach, or perhaps coarsely chopped mustard greens or chard. Now would be a good time to add another sprinkling of salt, too.

Keep on stirring and once the greens are just wilted, it's time to flick in a few dollops of goat cheese, if you've got it. And around here, we're fairly addicted to it so we've almost always got it!

And before you know it, before you've even finished your first glass of wine, you're pretty much ready to eat. This dish is great to combine with a grain, and tonight we were lucky to have a delicious wheat berry salad that the lovely Kanteen was kind enough to share, and it was the perfect complement.

If you didn't happen to have something at the ready, you might start cooking some rice or quinoa a few minutes before starting this dish so that it'd all be ready at the same time. Or you could just eat it with some crusty bread. It's highly adaptable and the perfect remedy for those times when you need something healthy & delicious but are running low on energy & time, which for me lately, seems to be all the time!