Come summertime, all I want to eat is salad. And fruit. And basically anything that is light and super easy to fix so I can spend more time outside hunting for ladybugs and collecting daisies...or something along those lines. Which brings me to this delicious, simple dinner that can be made at the drop of a hat--especially for those nights when you aren't sure what to make. The kicker with this recipe is that it's actually a warm salad--a nice break for your system, which can have a hard time digesting raw veggies all the time. I adapted this recipe from Celia Brooks Brown's New Vegetarian cookbook when I found myself one night with too many chickpeas and not enough creative inspiration for dinner. It was then my Chickpea & Mushroom Salad was born. I added in turmeric, chives, and other little ingredients to provide extra nutrition and flavor, and swapped out the called-for spinach for mixed-greens (mostly because that was what I had one hand). The yogurt mint and chive dressing provides the perfect tangy balance to the cumin and turmeric cooked mushrooms and chickpeas. Now this recipe is one of my go-to weeknight dinners!
Ingredients:
16 ounces cooked chickpeas (1 can, drained and rinsed, or one cup cooked)
12 ounces button mushrooms
1 small sweet onion, diced
3 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for sautéing mushrooms and chickpeas
2 cloves garlic, diced
1teaspoon chile seeds
2 teaspoons cumin
2 teaspoons turmeric
3 tablespoons lemon juice (about 2 lemons)
3/4 cups plain yogurt
2 tablespoons fresh mint, chopped
2 tablespoons fresh chives, chopped
5 cups mixed greens
Salt to taste
Heat oil in pan. Cut mushrooms in half and add them to the pan and cook until soft. Reduce heat and add diced onion and garlic and cook for 2 more minutes or until onions turn translucent. Then add chickpeas, cumin, turmeric, chile seeds, and salt to taste. Sauté for 1 minute then add 1 tablespoon lemon juice and let mixture simmer on low while you prepare the salad dressing.
For the salad dressing, mix together yogurt, olive oil and remaining lemon juice until combined. Mix in chives and mint, then salt to taste. Divide mixed greens between 4 plates, then add the chickpeas and mushrooms on top of the lettuce. Finally, pour yogurt dressing over the mushrooms and chickpeas. Serves 4. Enjoy!
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