Smoked Almond and Chickpea Sandwiches

This is my altered recipe out of my favorite cookbook, Thug Kitchen: Eat Like You Give a F*ck. Except I won't use quite as much harsh language if any at all. I've actually had to copy recipes out of this book before for my mom, who cries when she hears or sees cuss words, when she wanted to try a yummy vegan recipe.

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and have a greased baking sheet ready.

Let's start out with the ingredients. For the smoked almonds you are going to need:

• 2 1/2 teaspoons of liquid smoke
• 1/2 teaspoon of olive oil
• 1 teaspoon of soy sauce, tamari, or Bragg's [I use tamari for mine]
• 1 teaspoon of maple syrup or another liquid sweetener
• 2 teaspoons of nutritional yeast [I like to use 3 or 4 teaspoons, but that is because I absolutely love nooch!]
• 1 teaspoon of smoked paprika
• 1 teaspoon of garlic powder [I do not use powder in mine. I use 2 cloves of freshly minced garlic.]
• 3/4 cup of raw almonds [or just go ahead and use a full cup like I do]

To make your almonds mix together all of the liquid ingredients and combine the dry ingredients in a separate bowl. If you are using fresh garlic like me then go ahead and mix that with your dry ingredients. Add your almonds to your liquid bowl and make sure to stir thoroughly and cover your almonds in the sauce. Scoop your almonds out of the liquid bowl and add them to the dry bowl and stir/or shake together in a plastic baggy until they are covered. After go ahead and scoop them into an even layer on your baking sheet and toast them for 10 minutes. Stir them around and place back in the oven for 5 more minutes. Set aside to cool.

I didn't change much with the smoked almond portion of the sandwiches, but the rest is a little different from the original recipe.

For the sandwich part here is what you'll need:

• 3 cups of cooked chickpeas
• 1 avocado
• 3 tablespoons of lime juice [original calls for lemon]
• The original calls for 3/4 cup of chopped red onion, I omit this completely.
• 1/4 cup of chopped fresh dill [original calls for 1/3 cup]
• The original calls for 2 ribs of chopped celery, I also omit this from my version.
• 3 teaspoons of Sriracha [original calls for 1 to 2 teaspoons of your favorite hot sauce]

I do not add any salt or pepper to mine. I have naturally high blood pressure so the salt is no good for me, you can add salt to yours if you choose. I do not add pepper because I feel no need for it with the flavor.

You can also add dijon mustard, lettuce, and tomato [who wouldn't want the lettuce and tomato!]

Combine the chickpeas, avocado, and lime juice into a big bowl and mash together thoroughly. I like mine a little chunky, so you don't have to make it into a complete paste. It all depends on how you like it! Fold in the dill and hot sauce and mix all together. Chop up your cooled almonds and add to the mixture. Serve on toasted bread of your choice [I prefer flatbread] with Dijon mustard, lettuce, and tomato.

Now I understand I did not make many alterations to this recipe, these were just a few tweaks I like to make for my taste and texture preferences. I hope you all enjoy whether you have it my way or the Thug Kitchen way!