This was honestly one of the BEST sumer salads we have enjoyed in quite a while!
Honestly, it was a completely impromptu, clean out the fridge kind of meal that took all of us by surprise. I love how unplanned meals can sometimes be the most delicious and rewarding.
When planning dinner, I knew that I wanted to use up the remaining strawberries we had in the fridge along with some lettuce, cucumber and radish that had been hanging out in the fridge for too long. I remembered this meal that Ashley served up a week earlier and wondered how I could take what she did and parlay the ingredients I had lying around the house into a complete meal.
Here is what I came up with.
Maple Roasted Chickpeas – The only change I made to Ashley’s recipe was to add a pinch of sea salt in place of the cayenne pepper.
Maple Vinaigrette – I did change this recipe a little and was very happy with the taste. Although, the oil/vinegar separated in the fridge within 2 days, before I was able to use it all up. If you plan to use the dressing on more than one occasion, I would suggest only making half the recipe and using it up as soon as possible.
4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil (could sub almond or walnut oil)
4 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1/2 tbsp maple syrup
2 tsp garlic, minced (approximately 2-3 large cloves)
1 tsp dijon mustard
1/2 tsp maple extract
Pinch cinnamon
Pinch sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Place all ingredients into a blender or magic bullet and process on high until emulsified.
Will keep in the fridge for 2-3 days.
To complete the salad I added a dollop of roasted red pepper hummus along with all of the fresh eating veggies and fruit that we had in the fridge: mixed baby greens, baby spinach, cucumbers, radishes, sliced strawberries and minced scallions.
To round out the meal I served it with Gluten-Free Strawberry Cornbread and a delightful Strawberry Soup.
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