So before you go ahead and assume that this is a 10 minute quickie salad, I’m going to stop you and tell you that this salad takes quite a bit of time to put together.
But PLEASE, do not that stop you from trying to make this. The ingredients are simple to make…they just take some time and a little more effort than a ready-to-eat salad bag you grab from a grocery store.
*Quick note for my Muslim friends: Many dijon mustards have alcohol added to the ingredients, so you’ll need to find one that doesn’t have any. Also, although there may be differences of opinion on whether white wine/red wine vinegars are halal. Most scholars, including a local and respected Imam who I trust, agree that the process that turns alcohol into vinegar makes it halal. Naturally, when the product turns into vinegar, there is no longer alcohol in it. HOWEVER, some companies add alcohol into the vinegar as a flavoring component. So if you’re not sure, just call the company to double check their ingredients.
Serves 2-3 people
Ingredients:
1 bag or package mixed greens
1 can chickpeas
2 chicken breasts
1 cup quinoa, cooked
2 carrots, julienned (or shredded or chopped…up to you :))
3-4 golden beets, oven roasted
1/4-1/2 red onion, sliced
1 avocado chopped
Cherry tomatoes
Akkawi Cheese (optional)
Roasted Chickpeas Marinade:
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon paprika
crushed red peppers, to taste
1/4 cup olive oil
Chicken Marinade
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon paprika
Crushed red peppers, to taste
1/2 teaspoon tumeric
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup olive oil
Salad Dressing:
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
1/4 cup white wine vinegar
Step 1: Roasting the Beets: Preheat your oven to 400°F. Wash the beets thoroughly, cut off any awkward tails or ends and wrap each beet separately in foil. It will look like you have a foil ball in your hand. In order to keep things clean, place the beets in a foil lined tray and pop them into the oven for about 1 1/2 hours or until you can easily stick a fork into the beets. Once the beets are done, carefully remove them from the foil and peel off outer skin. This should be a very easy process and all you’ll need are your hands 🙂 Then cut up the beets and set them aside.
Step 2: Roast the Chickpeas: Preheat the oven to 400°F. Strain and rinse the chickpeas and then place them in a medium sized tray. Add the ingredients mentioned above under “Roasted Chickpeas Marinate” and then give the chickpeas in your tray a nice mix. Feel free to use your hands. Bake until they are golden and have a little bit of a crunch. Then set aside.
Step 3: Mix the dressing ingredients together and set aside.
Step 4: Marinate the chicken using the ingredients mentioned above. And let them sit for about 15 minutes before grilling them. To grill them, you may use your own favorite method whether it be outdoors on a grill or indoors on a non-stick pan or indoor grill.
Step 5: Combine all the salad ingredients – greens, chicken, chickpeas, dressing, etc in a bowl or plate of choice and ENJOY! 🙂
Sahtain!