Whilst recently searching the internet for some new and healthy recipes, I decided to start by searching for some local inspiration. Vancouver has some great local healthy food bloggers, including Foodess, The Bounty Hunter, and Everybody Likes Sandwiches (to name a few).
Whilst deep in the rabbit hole of Everybody Likes Sandwiches, I found many bean and legume recipes, and this particular dish, Tangy Lemon Smashed Chickpea Salad, stood out as a “must-try”. The writer of the blog, Jeannette, recommends using this salad as a sandwich filler. As I’m currently trying to avoid wheat I had to come up with another way to get this delicious salad into my face. I opted for; 1/ Heaped onto gluten-free crackers, and 2/ Sprinkled over a salad of mixed greens. Both ways work a treat!
As with the Tomato, Basil, Chickpea Salad that I made this week, this recipe can be made in advance and kept in the fridge for easy lunch-grabbing. This recipe comes together fast and takes about 5 to 10 minutes to make, depending on how fast you can chop your onions and pepper.
Tangy Lemon Smashed Chickpea Salad – Serves 4
1 cup of chickpeas, drained
1/4 of a cup finely diced red onion
1/2 green pepper, finely diced
1 lemon, juiced (though you might just want to use half a lemon if you aren’t so into the tangy like I am)
2 tablespoons of chopped fresh parsley
1 tablespoon of good mayo (vegan mayo if that’s your thing)
1 teaspoon of capers, finely chopped
1/4 teaspoon of flakey sea salt
A few shakes of your favorite hot sauce
Method:
In a medium bowl, dump in your chickpeas and use a potato masher to smash your chickpeas. This shouldn’t be hummus texture here – just smashed with some whole chickpeas and a lot of roughly chopped ones. Stir in the red onion, pepper, parsley, capers, lemon juice and the remaining ingredients. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed. Serve on toasted bread or crusty rolls or just eat as is, salad-style.
Recipe from Everybody Loves Sandwiches.
Sounds great…it would be nice to put out at a party with pita chips.