Weekend Cooking...Curried Chickpea Salad

As the end of the week starts approaching, I begin to think about what I will post here on Weekend Cooking.
And since it is Lent, and therefore Fridays are meat free, I take that into consideration also.

Then I happened upon this link to a Whole Food blog with a bunch of recipes using curry, including one with chickpeas. Oh my, I love chickpeas. So I was all set.
Wow, look at that..more limes...more cilantro. Love it.

Now, you know I had to make a change or two, right?
I have always considered curry a spice that needs to 'bloom' in hot oil. So I just took the olive oil in the recipe, heated it in a pot and added the curry, letting it cook for a few minutes, (gosh, that smells good) and then letting it cool before continuing. It said the whole cumin should be toasted, so I put it in a dry pan and heated it just until you could smell it.(wow, that smells good too!) And I increased the lime juice for 2 to 3 tablespoons and added the lime zest.
I will tell you that while this is very tasty as soon as you make it, if you let it sit a few hours or, even better, overnight, the flavors really get even better.

Curried Chickpea Salad
(adapted from Whole Food recipe)
Serves 8

Traditional Indian spices and flavors imbue this chickpea salad. Serve over mixed salad greens with pita chips for dinner. If you have any leftovers, spoon the salad into whole wheat pita bread and top with alfalfa sprouts or shredded lettuce for a tasty lunch.

Ingredients
1/4 cup olive oil
2 teaspoons curry powder
2 teaspoons cumin seeds, toasted
2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
3 tablespoons lime juice
zest of one lime
2 teaspoons maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup seedless raisins
2 (15-ounce) cans cooked chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 red bell pepper, cored, seeded and chopped
2/3 cup finely chopped red onion
1/2 cup cilantro or parsley, chopped
8 cups mixed greens
4 cups pita chips (optional)

Method
In a small pot heat oil and add curry power, sauteing for a minute. Let cool before you continue.
In a large bowl, whisk together vinegar, lime juice, zest, maple syrup and salt. Add cooled oil and curry. Add raisins, cumin, chickpeas, bell pepper, onion and cilantro and toss to combine. Spoon chickpea salad over salad greens and serve with pita chips on the side, if you like.

 

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This is my contribution this to this week's Weekend Cooking.
"Weekend Cooking is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share: Book (novel, nonfiction) reviews, cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, fabulous quotations, photographs. If your post is even vaguely foodie, feel free to grab the button and link up anytime over the weekend."
Be sure to check out the other entries this week. As always, hosted by Beth Fish Reads.

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