chickpea apricot salad
This chickpea salad, good anytime with dried apricots, gets a midsummer upgrade here with chopped, fresh apricots. The chickpeas are mixed with Italian parsley and other herbs, kalamata olives, and extra virgin olive oil. I served it with a currant-pistachio rice pilaf, steamed cauliflower, and watermelon with lime juice and mint. Use one batch of my Basic Chickpeas cooked with bay leaves and garlic, or pull out two cans of chickpeas from the cupboard.
I adapted the Turkish Garbanzo Salad from Puget Consumer’s Co-op’s deli, scaling PCC’s recipe down from commercial size, making it lighter and less vinegary, and using the fresh apricots instead of the original dried ones.
PCC is a large and successful food co-op known for its community contributions like cooking classes and a farmland preservation trust. I also appreciate their online recipe files.
- For the dressing:
- 2 Tbs. red wine vinegar
- 2 Tbs. extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tsp. minced garlic
- 1½ tsp. Dijon mustard
- 1 tsp. dried marjoram
- 1 tsp. dried oregano
- 2 tsp. paprika
- ¾ tsp. salt
- several generous grinds of black pepper
- For the salad:
- 5 cups freshly cooked garbanzo beans (see my Basic Chickpeas recipe) or 2 15 oz. cans garbanzo beans
- ⅓ cup chopped green onion (scallion), about 3 stalks (or red or sweet white onion)
- ⅓ cup chopped Italian parsley
- ½ cup chopped fresh or ⅓ cup finely chopped dried apricots
- 2 Tbsp. chopped pitted Kalamata olives
- Combine dressing ingredients with garbanzo beans in a large bowl.
- Add remaining ingredients.
- Serve, or if you have time (ideal but not required), marinate for several hours and then serve.
Related Posts:
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Winter Dinner Salad with Chickpeas, Quinoa Tabbouleh, Pomegranate Try this fall and winter dinner salad with touches from Middle-Eastern cuisine: spiced chickpeas, quinoa tabbouleh, and pomegranate. It's dressed with garlic-infused olive oil, lemon juice, and salt and pepper.
Spiced Chickpeas with Smoked Paprika, Curry Powder, and Turmeric A little spicy from curry powder and turmeric and smoky from pimenton de la vera, these chickpeas are simple to put together and easy to toss on a salad or vegetable.
Basic Chickpeas (aka Garbanzo Beans) Homemade chickpeas (garbanzo beans) cooked from scratch with garlic and bay leaves.
{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
This sounds awesome! Full of protein and flavor, love the addition of kalamata olives. I will definitely be trying this one!
Theresa recently posted..Vegan Quinoa Salad
Thanks, Theresa!
What a wonderful salad with so many great textures and flavors going on! I love having salads like this on hand during the summer for a cool lunch or dinner.
Reeni recently posted..Peaches and Cream Bundt Cake
I must confess, I’ve never used apricots in any savory application. Now that I’m finally beginning to get over my prejudice against fruit in savory dishes, I must try this! It definitely looks like a promising place to start.
Hannah recently posted..Feed Your Hungryface
I would have never thought about using apricots in a salad with chickpeas. Looks like a great recipe. Great summer salad!
Elizabeth recently posted..2012-2013 Food and Wine Festivals
This looks and sounds marvelous! I LOVE chickpeas. Can’t wait to try this.