For a fast and unique salad that is sure to please a hungry crowd.
I initially made this yummy salad as a quick meal prep idea on a Sunday night. It then turned into the only thing my husband ate all week, and quickly evolved into the number one side dish request for Thanksgiving. Well okay then. This wasn’t a carefully planned recipe, but more of a haphazard, throw it together, oh wait, this is delicious kind of dish. I use my slow cooker to make large batches of beans, chickpeas, rice and what have you, on Sundays and then go from there without really a ton of planning. Okay, so I have two gallons of chick peas, hmm, time to get creative I suppose.
So for this salad, I had prepped chickpeas in the slow cooker the night before (you can also whip up whenever you’re ready using the stove top method or your instant pot. Whenever I make large batches of protein, I try to make more than I need so I can use it in various ways throughout the week.
Boil quinoa with a pinch of salt and anywhere from 3-6 (or, ya know, like 300 to 600) garlic cloves right in the water. Can’t over do it with the garlic in my humble opinion. Quinoa and chickpeas are the only things that need to be cooked in advance, which is the beautiful thing about this salad. You can even sub chickpeas from a can if you want to cut cook time down even further; just drain and rinse and you’re good to go.
This salad is a gold trophy winner in my book. It’s packed with delicious and nutrient dense foods so you can meal prep it for the week, but it’s also pretty and fun which makes a perfect Thanksgiving side dish you can prep in advance and yank out of the fridge right as the guests arrive.
Recipe:
2 cups cooked quinoa
1 cup cooked chickpeas
2 apples, diced
10 dried apricots, diced
2 green onions, diced (including green stems)
5 raw brussel sprouts, shredded
1 cup raw kale, massaged and shredded
1/2 cup walnuts
1/3 cup pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tbsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
salt and pepper to taste
Simply mix all ingredients in a bowl and let chill for a few hours before serving. If you made this recipe, tag me on Facebook or Instagram, and I would love to share your creation in my stories!
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