Mediterranean Salad
Tossed with a light and bright lemon dijon vinaigrette, this refreshing Mediterranean Chickpea Salad is made in 15 minutes or less! It features juicy veggies, fresh parsley, plant-based feta cheese and more. Naturally gluten-free, dairy-free and vegan with paleo, Whole30, low-carb and keto options.
Ingredients
For the Mediterranean Chickpea Salad
- 1 head of Bibb Butter lettuce or Small Romaine (or half a medium Romaine), washed + dried, chopped (about 2 - 2 ½ cups)
- 1 large cucumber diced
- 1 small red bell pepper diced
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes halved
- half of a small red onion peeled
- 1 small avocado or 1/2 a medium avocado
- 1/4 cup finely chopped parsley
- 1/4 cup kalamata olives pitted and chopped
- 1 14-15 ounce can of chickpeas, rinsed and drained omit for paleo, low carb, keto and Whole30 and add protein of choice.
- 1/2 cup crumbled vegan feta cheese we like Violife + more for serving. Omit for paleo and Whole30 or sub with regular if not dairy-free.
- Fine sea salt + freshly cracked black pepper to taste
For the Lemon Dijon Vinaigrette
- 1/4 cup avocado oil or olive oil
- 2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon maple syrup or preferred sticky liquid sweetener such as sugar-free maple syrup or yacon syrup (omit for Whole30)
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly-cracked black pepper to taste
- 1 small clove garlic finely minced
- Gluten-free/grain-free tortilla chips optional, for serving. We like Siete Grain-free tortilla chips.
Instructions
Make the Dressing
-
Whisk all ingredients together in a bowl (or shake together in a jar) until combined. Taste and add additional seasonings or sweetener if desired.
Store in the refrigerator while you prepare the ingredients for the salad. Can store in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Assemble the Salad
-
Use a sharp knife to chop the lettuce, followed by dicing the cucumber, red pepper, halve the cherry tomatoes then add them to a large salad bowl, placing all the ingredients next to each other.
-
Peel the onion then cut into thin slices. Transfer to the salad bowl.
-
Carefully cut the avocado in half, and remove the pit. Cut into cubes and transfer to the salad bowl.
-
Add the parsley, drained chickpeas and feta to the salad bowl.
-
Season the salad with salt and black pepper.
-
Drizzle the salad with the desired amount of the vinaigrette, and toss until evenly combined.
-
Serve immediately, topped with extra feta cheese and black pepper if desired.
-
Grab one tortilla chip to scoop up some salad and enjoy.
Recipe Notes
Serve dressing on the side if you think you might have leftovers. It's best to store salad and vinaigrette in separate airtight containers in the fridge. The salad will last for up to 2 days and the dressing will last for up to 4.
If salad and dressing have already been combined, enjoy leftovers within 1-2 days. After a while, the vinaigrette will start to draw liquid from the veggies and water down the dish.