2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 big (or 2 small) onions, diced small
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
1, ½-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and minced
1 teaspoon turmeric
½ teaspoon ground cumin
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 large pinch cayenne
1 cup canned chopped tomatoes
1, 15-ounce can chick peas (about 1 ¾ cups)
½ cup water
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 bunch cilantro, chopped

Salt to taste

Fry onion in oil over medium heat until soft. Add garlic, ginger, spices and a pinch of salt. Cook five more minutes on medium-low heat to bring out fragrance.

Add tomatoes with their juice, and bit more salt. Cook five minutes more.

Add chickpeas, ½ cup water and simmer on low heat for 10 minutes.

Remove from heat, stir in lemon juice and cilantro.

Notes:

Half measures of spices make it suitably mild for kids.

Fresh soaked and simmered chick peas can be used.
For the quick soak method, add the beans to a large pot, cover with several inches of water and bring to a boil. Boil for 5 minutes then take the pot off of the heat and let the beans sit in the water for 1 hour. After soaking the beans, you can cook them (see how below).

If canned chick peas are used, they can be drained rinsed and refilled with water for the ½ cup.