Chickpea, Sundried Tomatoes, Kasha, Red Onion, Fistful of Herbs with Feta Cheese and Chili Flakes

Lazy Mondays: Seven Spoons’ Chickpea, Sundried Tomatoes, and Kasha salad

NOTES

The more herbs, the better. I added kasha to Tara O’Brady’s recipe, but I think the recipe could take the addition of any grain – farro, quinoa, wheat berries etc. It makes it a little lighter (I photographed it both ways). Forego the cheese to make this a vegan entrée.

INSTRUCTIONS

If you’re using dried chickpeas, soak overnight or for at least 1-2 hours. Submerge in boiling water until soft to the bite. Make sure they are fully cooked or the salad will taste dry and the beans won’t soak up the flavors. Drain and set aside.

If using the kasha, bring broth to a boil. Add butter and kasha. Now turn off the heat, cover, and allow to sit while you make the rest of the salad. The grain will absorb the liquid and soon be ready to fluff with a fork.

In a small bowl, douse the red onion with the vinegar. Sprinkle over a good pinch of salt, then use your fingers to squish the mixture a bit. This will work the salt into the onions and break down their acrid bite a little faster. Set aside.

In a medium saucepan over medium-low heat, warm the olive oil, garlic, and red chili flakes. If there is any sizzle at all, turn the heat to low. Once the oil is fragrant and the garlic turns translucent, turn off the heat. Add the sundried tomatoes and chickpeas at this point, allowing them to steep as the oil reaches room temperature. This step of bathing the chickpeas in the warm oil is optional, but I feel it imparts more flavor to the beans.

Once the oil has cooled, remove the tomatoes and chickpeas from the saucepan and put them into a large bowl (keep the oil, set it aside). Do the same with the onions, adding them to the salad but reserving the vinegar.

In that vinegar bowl, whisk in the mustard, salt, and pepper. Whisking constantly, slowly drizzle in the steeped olive oil. Once the vinaigrette is emulsified and thick, coarsely chop the herbs and add to the bowl, reserving about 1 tbs as garnish for the end. Pour this dressing over the chickpeas and tomatoes. Toss to combine. Add kasha and gently fold in to the mixture.

Crumble the feta over the top of the dish, then fold gently to distribute. Check for seasoning.

Serve warm, or refrigerate for 2 hours or more to let the flavors further infuse. Garnish by sprinkling the remaining herbs on top.

RECIPE

DIFFICULTY

EASY

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SERVES

3

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Salad

  • 1/2 
    cup 
    kasha (optional)
  • 1/2 
    tsp 
    unsalted butter
  • cup 
    broth
  • 1/4  
    large 
    red onion, sliced wafer thin
  • tbs 
    red wine vinegar
  • tbs 
    olive oil
  • 1-2 
    cloves 
    garlic, sliced wafer thin
  • 1/8 
    tsp 
    red chili flakes (optional)
  • cups 
    cooked chickpeas (garbanzo beans)
  • 1/2 
    cup 
    mixed herbs, ex. parsley, thyme, cilantro, basil, oregano, mint
  • cup 
    crumbled goats milk feta cheese
  • tsp 
    english mustard
  •  
    sundried tomatoes, julienned
  • a pinch of 
     
    salt
  • a pinch of  
     
    freshly ground pepper

INSTRUCTIONS

If you’re using dried chickpeas, soak overnight or for at least 1-2 hours. Submerge in boiling water until soft to the bite. Make sure they are fully cooked or the salad will taste dry and the beans won’t soak up the flavors. Drain and set aside.

If using the kasha, bring broth to a boil. Add butter and kasha. Now turn off the heat, cover, and allow to sit while you make the rest of the salad. The grain will absorb the liquid and soon be ready to fluff with a fork.

In a small bowl, douse the red onion with the vinegar. Sprinkle over a good pinch of salt, then use your fingers to squish the mixture a bit. This will work the salt into the onions and break down their acrid bite a little faster. Set aside.

In a medium saucepan over medium-low heat, warm the olive oil, garlic, and red chili flakes. If there is any sizzle at all, turn the heat to low. Once the oil is fragrant and the garlic turns translucent, turn off the heat. Add the sundried tomatoes and chickpeas at this point, allowing them to steep as the oil reaches room temperature. This step of bathing the chickpeas in the warm oil is optional, but I feel it imparts more flavor to the beans.

Once the oil has cooled, remove the tomatoes and chickpeas from the saucepan and put them into a large bowl (keep the oil, set it aside). Do the same with the onions, adding them to the salad but reserving the vinegar.

In that vinegar bowl, whisk in the mustard, salt, and pepper. Whisking constantly, slowly drizzle in the steeped olive oil. Once the vinaigrette is emulsified and thick, coarsely chop the herbs and add to the bowl, reserving about 1 tbs as garnish for the end. Pour this dressing over the chickpeas and tomatoes. Toss to combine. Add kasha and gently fold in to the mixture.

Crumble the feta over the top of the dish, then fold gently to distribute. Check for seasoning.

Serve warm, or refrigerate for 2 hours or more to let the flavors further infuse. Garnish by sprinkling the remaining herbs on top.

In honor of Lazy Mondays (where I feature a recipe from another blogger or cookbook author), this salad comes from one of my new favorite blogs, Seven Spoons. Tara O’Brady writes from southern Ontario. She is cooking up a storm just north of our kitchen with her forthcoming cookbook in my mind (the book will be released in 2015). Her photos are bright and hunger-inducing, and this salad was straightforward, healthy, and pleasantly open for interpretation.

Tara instructs us to add a “fistful of herbs” to the final product. She says, “The fistful of herbs is literal; I head outside to our herb boxes and pick whatever needs pruning or strikes my fancy.” In my case, I added two handfuls of herbs, since my hands are small and I love a fragrant salad.

I happened to have about a cup of cooked kasha and buckwheat kernels in the fridge, which I tossed in at the end to lighten up the dish. I love chickpeas, but they can be a bit dense, especially since we were eating this as a main course.

Tara notes that red chili flakes are optional, but unless you are total spice-wuss, I suggest including them. For me, the heat was the best part. I also ate the salad on the warm side and I thought this was perfect. Tara suggests refrigerating for two hours before eating. Give that a try, but I was hungry and I didn’t have the patience to wait.