Chickpea & Chipotle Tostadas

Late January. The annual Bayamón trip is in two weeks. Marisol has been calling. I have been hesitating. Mami has been declining.

I asked Mami Wednesday. I said, "Mami, the trip." She said, "Carmen, go." I said, "Mami, I am hesitating." She said, "Carmen, you always hesitate. You always go. Go." I said, "Mami, what if —" She said, "Carmen, what if nothing. Sofía is here. Carmen the aide is here. Eduardo will fly back if anything. I will be here when you come back. If I am not — Carmen, then I am not here, and the trip happened, and the cooking happened, and the eating happened, and the sun happened. The trip is for you. Do not wait for permission you do not need."

I bought tickets Thursday. February 9 to February 16. One week. Marisol's house. Same as last year. Eduardo coming.

Tuesday food bank: pollo guisado. The team handled it. Yolanda is now my equal in the kitchen. She does not need me anymore for the food bank shift. I came in mostly to be present. Brian said, "Carmen, you can sit out a Tuesday if you want." I said, "Brian, I want to be here." He said, "Carmen, you do not have to be here." I said, "Brian, I want to."

Wednesday La Cocina cohort 3 week three: stewed meats. Same lesson. Same rhythm. Janet was developing well. Ricardo, the widower, was opening up — he had been quiet weeks one and two and was now speaking up, asking questions, telling small stories about his late wife's cooking. Jamal and Marissa were in love and learning together, which was a pleasure to watch.

Thursday I sat with Mami for three hours. She was lucid for most of it. She told me, "Carmen, when I die, I want my funeral mass at St. Augustine. Father Marquez. The boleros at the wake. The flag of Puerto Rico over my coffin under the American flag — both flags, Carmen, because I lived in two places and refused neither — and the pasteles at the wake reception. And no one wears black. I want color. Tell them. Yellow if they have it." I said, "Mami, I will tell them." She said, "Carmen, write it down so I do not have to repeat." I wrote it down. The notebook now has a page that is a wake plan. The page is detailed. Mami is making her wake the way she made everything else — with strong opinions and clear directions. Wepa.

The week of stewed meats at La Cocina — watching Ricardo finally speak, watching Jamal and Marissa lean into each other over a simmering pot — reminded me that food does not always need to be the main event to hold enormous weight. When I got home Thursday after sitting with Mami and writing down her wake plan in the notebook, I did not want to stand over a long braise. I wanted something I could pull together with my hands moving on their own, something with heat and smoke and a little defiance in it. These tostadas are exactly that: fast, bold, and deeply satisfying — the kind of recipe that lets you be present at the table instead of tethered to the stove.

Prep Time: 10 minutes | Cook Time: 15 minutes | Total Time: 25 minutes | Servings: 4

Ingredients

8 tostada shells (store-bought or oven-crisped corn tortillas)
2 cans (15 oz each) chickpeas, drained and rinsed
2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, minced, plus 1 tablespoon adobo sauce
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 medium yellow onion, finely diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste
1/2 cup canned diced tomatoes, drained
Juice of 1 lime
1 cup refried beans (canned or homemade), warmed
1 cup shredded cabbage or iceberg lettuce
1/2 cup crumbled cotija or queso fresco
1/4 cup sour cream or Mexican crema
1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves
1 avocado, sliced, for serving
Lime wedges, for serving

Instructions

Build the chipotle base. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook 1 minute more until fragrant.
Season and add chickpeas. Stir in cumin, smoked paprika, and salt. Add chickpeas, minced chipotle peppers, and adobo sauce. Stir well to coat all the chickpeas evenly in the spice mixture.
Add tomatoes and simmer. Pour in drained diced tomatoes and stir to combine. Cook over medium heat for 8–10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the liquid reduces and the chickpeas begin to soften slightly and absorb the flavors. Squeeze in lime juice and taste for salt. Remove from heat.
Warm the tostada shells. If using oven-crisped tortillas, spread corn tortillas on a baking sheet, brush lightly with oil, and bake at 400°F for 6–8 minutes until golden and crisp. Store-bought tostada shells can be used directly.
Spread the beans. Spoon a thin, even layer of warmed refried beans onto each tostada shell, going nearly to the edge so every bite has a base.
Top and assemble. Spoon the chipotle chickpea mixture generously over the beans. Layer on shredded cabbage, avocado slices, cotija, a drizzle of crema, and fresh cilantro leaves.
Serve immediately. Arrange on a platter and serve with lime wedges alongside. Tostadas are best eaten right away while the shells are still crisp.

Nutrition (per serving)

Chickpea & Chipotle Tostadas — What I Cook When the Kitchen Teaches Me Back