Persian "Matzoh Balls" with Chickpeas and Chicken (Gondi)

Ingredients

• 1 large carrots thinly sliced
• 2 cups bob's mill garbanzo bean flour 
• 2 cups chickpeas drained and rinsed cooked (one 15-ounce can, )
• 1  eggs 
• 2 cups optional: dill fresh loosely packed coarsely chopped
• 3 cloves garlic minced
• 2 tablespoons grapeseed oil 
• 2 teaspoons ground cardamom 
• 1 pound ground chicken 
• 1 teaspoon ground turmeric 
• 0.3 cup juice of lemon freshly squeezed
• 4  limes dried hot for 15 minutes to cover
• 6 servings sea salt and pepper black freshly ground
• 8 cups vegetable stock 
• 2  onions yellow

Equipment

• food processor
• bowl
• ladle
• whisk
• pot
• slotted spoon

Directions

1. To make the matzoh balls, puree the onions in a food processor.
2. Transfer to a large bowl, and whisk in the egg, garlic, cardamom, turmeric, oil, 2 teaspoons salt, and several grinds of pepper.
3. Mix in the chickpea flour and chicken to form a thick paste. Cover and store the dough in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours, or up to 24 hours, to firm up.
4. Wet your hands with cold water and break off walnut-size pieces of the dough.
5. Roll them into smooth balls, to make a total of 30 balls.
6. In a large stockpot, bring the 12 cups stock and 2 teaspoons sea salt to a rapid boil. Carefully drop the dumplings into the stock. Turn down the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 50 minutes without opening the pot. When ready, the gondi will be firm in the center.
7. Remove them with a slotted spoon. The cooking stock can be strained and used for the soup broth, or reserved for another use.
8. In a second stockpot, combine the 8 cups stock, carrot, and chickpeas and bring to a boil. Pierce the limes several times with a fork and add them to the stock along with their soaking water. Lower the heat and simmer, covered, for 15 minutes.
9. Add the herbs and season to taste with salt and pepper. Stir in the lemon juice just before serving. Divide the gondi among soup bowls, ladle the broth over the top, and serve.
10. Vegetarian Option
11. Use 1 (14-ounce) package firm tofu in place of the chicken.
12. Drain and press the tofu well, then pulse in a food processor until coarsely ground to the consistency of ground meat.
13. Louisa Shafia's first cookbook, Lucid Food: Cooking for an Eco-Conscious Life, was nominated for an IACP award. She has cooked at notable restaurants in New York and San Francisco, including Aquavit, Pure Food and Wine, and Millennium. Her recipes have appeared in New York magazine, Yoga Journal, Food Network Magazine, and Every Day with Rachael Ray. Look for Louisa on the Cooking Channel's Taste in Translation series, and visit her at www.lucidfood.com.