Tasty Tuesday: Chickpea Shawarma Salad

Like many Americans, I spent the majority of the holiday weekend stuffing my face with fattening food. Enchiladas smothered in tons of cheese, ice cream, macaroni and cheese, burgers, fried onion rings ... Those are just a few of the delicious (but very unhealthy) things I ate.

I'm not going to pretend that I only eat healthy food most of the time because I don't. (If there was any doubt, just look at my blog name: the word "indulge" should give you some clue that my eating habits aren't always that great.) I do have some good eating habits, like working fruits and veggies into my meals, going completely vegetarian at least one day each week, and eating more chicken and fish than red meat. But, if I'm being completely honest, I eat a lot of things that aren't so great for me as well.

The thing is, I'm not that young anymore. My metabolism isn't as awesome as it used to be. (Ah, how I long for the days when I could eat a 3 lb box of chocolates in one sitting and not gain a pound!). These days I actually have to balance unhealthy and healthy eating and spend more time working out if I want to maintain and/or lose weight. 

Eating healthier doesn't mean I have to sacrifice flavor, though. This is something I've been realizing more and more as I scour the internet for recipe ideas. 

I mean, just look at that picture! Yes, it's just a salad with roasted chickpeas, but it was amazing. I couldn't believe that something so simple could be packed with so much flavor! 

This salad is surprisingly filling as well. Eric and I just ate some pita chips with some hummus as our "side dish," and that was plenty. (And yes, I realize that that's a lot of chickpeas for one meal, especially considering the dressing for this salad also contains hummus ... But chickpeas are just so damn good.)

If, like me, you're a huge fan of chickpeas, you need to try this recipe. My meat loving husband even commented multiple times that this meal was really good and flavorful ... So I knew it was a real winner!

Chickpea Shawarma Salad

Adapted ever so slightly from a recipe on Minimalist Baker.

Ingredient List (Chickpeas and Salad):

• 1 15 oz. can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 1/2 tsp coriander
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ginger
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1/4 tsp garlic salt
• 4-5 oz. spring mix packaged salad
• 12 grape tomatoes, quartered
• 1/4 cup red onion, thinly sliced
• Pita chips for serving

Instructions (Chickpeas and Salad):

1.  Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

2.  Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil, coat with cooking spray, and set aside.

3.  Combine the chickpeas, cumin, smoked paprika, turmeric, coriander, cinnamon, ginger, black pepper, and garlic salt in a medium bowl, mixing well to coat the chickpeas as evenly as possible. 

4.  Add the olive oil to the chickpeas and spices, and stir a few more times to coat. (I recommend tasting a chickpea at this point and adding more spices if necessary. I added a little more cumin, smoked paprika, and turmeric, but didn't measure out the exact amount.)

5.  Pour the chickpeas onto the prepared baking sheet. Be sure to spread them out in a single layer across the baking sheet.

6.  Place the chickpeas in the oven and allow them to roast for 20-22 minutes. I'd suggest checking them once about halfway through, and stirring them a bit.

7.  While the chickpeas are roasting, begin assembling the salads. I added everything to the bowls except for the pita chips at this point.

8.  When the chickpeas are finished, allow them to cool slightly. (I just let them sit at room temperature for about 3 minutes.) After they've cooled a bit, add them to the salad bowls. Pour the dressing (recipe below) over the salad and garnish with pita chips.


Ingredient List (Dressing):

• 1/2 cup garlic hummus (I used Sabra roasted garlic hummus.)
• 1 tsp dried dill
• 1 lemon
• Water to thin the dressing 

Instructions (Dressing):

1.  Add the garlic hummus and dried dill to a small bowl, stirring well to combine.

2.  Squeeze the juice from the lemon into the bowl, once again stirring well to combine. 

3.  Add water, 1 tsp at a time, until the dressing is of desired consistency. (I only had to use 2 tsp of water because my lemon was so large that it produced quite a bit of juice. I highly recommend using a larger lemon in the dressing because the juice gave it a really nice vibrant, tangy flavor.)

This made enough for two large dinner salads and one lunch sized portion of salad. If you find yourself with leftovers, I highly recommend placing everything into separate containers. I'd also suggest eating the leftovers within a day or two.