Chickpea Salad

This is an easy salad to put together using canned chickpea and sun-dried tomatoes instead of fresh tomatoes. They pair nicely with the red onion, lemon juice and fresh herbs. Aleppo pepper is fragrant fruity pepper with mild heat, Sumac has a citrusy tartness, and is a classic spice of the Middle East. Chickpeas are a rich source of vitamins, minerals, and fiber, offering a variety of health benefits. In addition, chickpeas are high in protein which makes an excellent replacement for meat in many vegetarian diets.

Serves 4
Prep time: 10 minutes

Ingredients

2 15½-ounce cans organic chickpeas, rinsed and drained

2 tablespoons California olive oil, plus more to serve

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon Aleppo pepper

1 teaspoon ground sumac

Kosher salt

Fresh black ground pepper

1 small red onion, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced

1 medium garlic clove, finely grated

3 tablespoons Meyer lemon juice

¼ cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, drained and thinly sliced

¼ cup lightly packed fresh cilantro, chopped

Directions

1. In a medium mixing bowl, stir together the chickpeas, olive oil, ground cumin, Aleppo pepper, sumac, ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon black pepper and let stand

2. In a mixing bowl, stir together the sliced onion, garlic and lemon juice

3. Let the lemon mixture stand for at least 10 minutes

4. Combine the chickpea mixture, lemon/onion mixture, sun-dried tomatoes, and cilantro. 

5. Stir gently to combine

6. Plate

7. Enjoy

Make it your own

Don’t have Aleppo pepper, substitute the following

         1 teaspoon sweet paprika

         Pinch of Cayenne Pepper

Don’t have sun dried tomato, substitute 1 cup diced fresh tomatoes, step 4

Add 1 red bell pepper, deseeded and finely chopped, step 4

Add 1/3 cup pitted Kalamata olives, chopped, step 4