The end of tomato season is just about here for my garden, which means that now is the time that my tomatoes are the most abundant. We put this cherry tomato chickpea and shrimp sheet pan dinner on the rotation several times before I got it just right.
First, I tried the recipe without the shrimp for a vegetarian version and I felt like it was missing some texture. I pondered for days about what vegetable to add before I decided to try shrimp instead.
This was somewhat odd for me because legumes like chickpeas are usually my protein source in a meal. In this dish, they kind-of become the main vegetable, and the tomatos sort-of make up the sauce.
Perhaps that means that I am bringing the wonderful world of legumes to those who might not think to use them as a vegetable in their cooking. A deliciously wonderful aftereffect.
Variations to the Cherry Tomato Chickpea and Shrimp Sheet Pan Dinner:
- Don’t skip the feta. I love the texture of the feta after roasting. The slices get slightly caramalized and get a little more chewy. They make delicoius umami bombs mixed in with the chickpeas and cherry tomatoes.
- Try another type of tomato. I have made this with large heirloom tomatoes, sliced into wedges before roasting. It works well, but takes more time for the intial roast and has a more saucy consistency in comparison to the cherry tomatoes.
- Make it vegetarian by swapping the shrimp for other vegetables like mushrooms, hearts of palm, or eggplant slices.
- 1 lb cherry tomatoes, halved
- 2 TBS olive oil, divided
- 1 cup chickpeas, from a can, drained
- ½ tsp cumin
- ¼ tsp each: smoked paprika, garlic powder and salt
- 4 oz block feta, sliced
- 8 large shrimp, peeled
- 1 TBS capers
- 1 TBS red wine vinegar
- Preheat oven to 425 F.
- Toss cherry tomatoes with 1 TBS olive oil on a sheet pan. Roast in the oven for 15-17 minutes, or until just starting to caramalize.
- Meanwhile, combine chickpeas with cumin, smoked paprika, garlic powder and salt.
- When the tomatoes come out of the oven, set the oven to broil. Gently toss the chickpeas with the cherry tomatoes and nestle the feta slices into the mixture so they are mostly exposed to the broiler. Broil for about 3 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and nestle shrimp into the mixture. Drizzle the last 1 TBS olive oil over top. Return to the oven and broil for 2 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes before serving.
- Serve the tomato mixture topped with capers and red wine vinegar.
Sounds delicious!
Will try as I’m trying to eat more fish and seafood (as a mostly vegetarian).
That’s me too, mostly vegetarian, a little fish and seafood. I hope you enjoy the recipe, Eva!