Recipe: Kale salad with marinated chick peas

May is National Salad Month and the perfect time to encourage us all to incorporate more salads in our daily food regimen. Let’s celebrate by turning over a new leaf. Salads allow us to get creative, change our eating habits and eat plenty of veggies during our day. Fruits can be added too!

Salads should include many layers of texture and flavor to completely satisfy our appetites. The freshest of ingredients should always be used and we should include an additional amount of plant-based proteins so that the salad can act as a meal and adequately sustain us. Let’s get started!

Kale Salad

Yield: 2 servings

Ingredients

• 6 C chopped curly kale, (remove the tough ‘spine’ that runs down the middle of the leaf)
• 1 C marinated cooked chickpeas (recipe below)
• 1 C shredded carrots
• 1 C shredded red cabbage
• Half an avocado, thinly sliced
• Half a medium size cucumber, thinly sliced
• 10 cherry tomatoes, cut in half
• 2 radishes, thinly sliced
• 2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tsp fresh squeezed lemon juice
• ½ tsp of sea salt

Garnish with pea or sunflower sprouts, sunflower or pumpkin seeds or dried fruits, such as cranberries.

Chickpea Marinade

• 1/8 C extra virgin olive oil
• Juice of one medium-sized lemon
• 1 clove of garlic, finely minced
• 1 tsp dried Italian seasoning
• ¼ tsp sea salt
• ¼ tsp cracked black pepper

Mix all ingredients in a bowl and whisk. Add in cooked chickpeas and stir so that the chickpeas are coated. Let marinate for 2 to 3 hours or overnight.

Instructions

Place the chopped kale in medium-sized bowl. Add the sea salt and gently begin to ‘massage’ the kale. This will begin to break down the cell walls and make the kale much more palatable. Add the olive oil, lemon juice, carrots and cabbage, and toss all together.

Plating

Divide the chopped kale evenly between two salad plates or bowls. Place in the center of the plate.

Divide the marinated chickpeas, using a half-cup scoop, and place on top of the bed of kale.

Divide the sliced cucumbers, radishes and cherry tomatoes between the servings and place around each bed of kale. Place the sliced avocado, half for each salad, on top of the marinated chickpeas.

Garnish with pea or sunflower sprouts, or sprinkle with sunflower or pumpkin seeds and/or dried cranberries.

This salad can be made in so many delicious variations so use your creativity and enjoy!

About the author: Chef Nina Curtis is the director and executive chef at Adventist Health’s Vitaliz Café in Roseville, California. Follow her @botanicalchef on social media.