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Photography: Christina SimonsIf anything is due for an image revamp it has to be this horny little beast, the chickpea or garbanzo. The Romans referred to it as small ram or cicer arietinum after its ram’s head shape.Long the staple of the hairy jumper brigade and those in need of a fibre boost, the Romans knew a few other things about their magical powers and fed them to their prized stallions.These little blighters are packed with up to 30 per cent protein of the slow-release variety, 60 per cent of the good complex carbohydrates and are stuffed with health-giving minerals - without the stigma of Horny Goatweed.According to that naughty Arabic text The Perfumed Garden of the Shaykh Nefwazi, great sexual exploits were achieved after eating chickpeas: “Abu el-Heidja has deflowered in one night once 80 virgins, and he did not eat or drink between, because he surfeited himself with chickpeas, and had drunk camel’s milk with honey mixed.”Nicholas Culpeper, the 17th century astrologer and physician reported that chickpeas are “under the dominion of Venus, they are less windy than beans, but nourish more; they provoke urine, and are thought to increase sperm”.As a low glycemic food they are also ideal for endurance athletes. These humble legumes boost iron and magnesium levels, helping reduce tension, the risk of heart attacks and the oxidisation of nasty cancer causing free radicals. They also cut cholesterol levels.As with everything, there can be too much of a good thing. Chickpea overload causes gout and kidney stones. Oh, and their flowers are bisexual.

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