Sams Chickpea Pasta Sauce

Sams Chickpea Pasta Sauce
Our Italian friend Sam gave me this recipe- its mostly from the pantry so its a good last minute meal and its creamy lusciousness belies its healthy construction.
Dont be afraid of using the anchovies, they just add a richness to the sauce without be detectable, the recipe could be vegetarian or vegan by simply taking out the anchovies.
The sauce is so delicious with pasta, but if you add a little more stock and a little less pasta it becomes a comforting soup.
You will need:
3tbs olive oil
2 anchovy fillets
1 large garlic clove
1tsp rosemary, chopped plus an extra tsp for just before serving
a good pinch or two of dried chilli flakes
2 tins chickpeas, drained
1 1/2 cups stock (vegetable or chicken)
Gently heat the olive oil in a saucepan and add the anchovy fillets, they will melt down into the oil and when they do add the garlic and rosemary – cook for 2 minutes.
Add the chickpeas, reserving half a cup.
Add the stock and bring to the boil and then simmer for 10 minutes.
Puree the mixture and add back the reserved chickpeas and extra rosemary and season with white pepper and salt if required (it might be salty enough with the anchovies).
Hint: The sauce should be the consistency of runny cream.
Allow quite a lot more sauce than necessary for the pasta, (it is quickly absorbed and can become gluey. its a good idea to reserve half a cup of pasta water to add to the sauce if needed).
Sir the sauce through pasta and serve with finely grated lemon, chopped rosemary, chopped parsley, grated Parmesan and rosemary flowers (if you can find them).