Name: Citrus Chickpea and Kale Salad
Total time: 20 min
Yield: 4 Servings
Ingredients: Kale: 8 ounces; Citrus (Oranges & Grapefruit): 3; Green Onion: 1; Garbanzo Beans (Chickpeas): 15 ounce can; Extra Virgin Olive Oil: 1 Tablespoon; Smoked Paprika Powder: 0.5 teaspoon; Ground Cumin: 0.5 teaspoon; Ground Turmeric: 0.25 teaspoon; Sea Salt: 0.5 teaspoon; Ground Black Pepper: 0.25 teaspoon; Tahini: 0.3 cup; Citrus Juice: 2 Tablespoons; Maple Syrup: 1 teaspoon

Ingredients

8 ounces Kale

3 Citrus (Oranges & Grapefruit)

1 Green Onion

15 ounce can Garbanzo Beans (Chickpeas)

1 Tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil

0.5 teaspoon Smoked Paprika Powder

0.5 teaspoon Ground Cumin

0.25 teaspoon Ground Turmeric

0.5 teaspoon Sea Salt

0.25 teaspoon Ground Black Pepper

Tahini Dressing

0.3 cup Tahini

2 Tablespoons Citrus Juice

1 teaspoon Maple Syrup

Directions

Juicy and vibrant citrus chickpea and kale salad!

This salad has all of the necessaries; a dark leafy green, lot of color, a protein, something sweet, and something creamy.

This recipe is fully plant-based, high in vitamins and nutrients and also has protein from the chickpeas.

Growing up in Florida, it seemed like it is citrus season year round.

I grew up in a town with a Tropicana plant and during the months of January and February there was a constant sweet smell in the air.

The smell of oranges being squeezed non-stop!

Citrus fruits grow on flowering trees and shrubs and are sweet, brightly colored and packed with vitamins.

There are so many kinds of citrus with the most common being navel oranges, grapefruit and lemons.

Some other pretty and delicious citrus include mandarins, limes, yuzu, pomelos and citron!

Now that I am more aware of the produce seasons, I truly enjoy walking around the grocery store and building my meals around the freshest ingredients.

So naturally, when various citrus is in season, I make this salad!

And because no salad is complete without a flavorful dressing, I paired this with a citrus and creamy tahini dressing!

If you are not familiar with tahini, get some and you will fall in love. It is mainly used to make hummus, sauces and dressings.

Tahini is made from sesame seeds and very versatile. I’ve added it to smoothies, hot chocolate, or to spread on toast.

The best tahini is usually runny and creamy in consistency. The thicker the tahini, the more bitter.

Chickpeas, aka garbanzo beans are great staple to have in your pantry at all times.

They are packed with fiber and plant protein with healthy carbs that keep us fuller longer and benefits digestion.

Steps

1 Done	Let's Talk Citrus I recommend using whatever citrus fruit you can find in your grocery store. Here, I am using red grapefruit and oranges. Blood oranges or Meyer lemons, if you can find them, are also an amazing addition.
2 Done	Make The Dressing In a bowl, whisk together the tahini, juice from the citrus and a bit of maple syrup. Depending on the kind of tahini you buy, you might need to add a bit of water to loosen the consistency. This dressing can be stored in an airtight jar in the refrigerator for up to 5 days!
3 Done	Fry The Chickpeas Drain, rinse and dry the chickpeas well. I like to spread them out onto a kitchen towel and lightly pressing to remove as much water as possible. If your chickpeas are wet, they will steam rather than crisp up. Add the chickpeas to a bowl along with the olive oil and spices. Toss to coat well then pan dry in a skillet or use your air-fryer! Be sure to keep the chickpeas moving in the pan or give the air-fryer basket a shake half way through to avoid uneven frying and burning. If you are pan frying, do so on medium heat for about 10-15 minutes and 400°F for 5 minutes in the air-fryer or until they are golden and crispy.
4 Done	Massage The Kale Wash the kale well, remove the stems and roughly chop or rip into bite size pieces. Add the kale to your salad bowl then squeeze about 1 Tablespoon of citrus juice over the kale. Next, use your fingers and massage the kale for 30 seconds or so. This will tenderize the leaves and remove some of the bitterness from the raw kale.
5 Done	Assemble the Salad Wash and dry the citrus fruit, then remove the peel, slice into rounds then cut into quarters. Discard any seeds. Top the kale with the citrus and the fried chickpeas. Lastly, add the thinly sliced green onion and drizzle with the dressing! So simple yet so much flavor, texture, juiciness and creaminess. It's the perfect salad in my opinion.
6 Done	Store With salads, it's always best to store the dressing separately but you can still store the dressed salad in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.