Foodstirs

Enjoy Labor Day With A Fresh Green Bean Chickpea Salad

End summer fun with a delicious green bean salad. For a quick timesaver, use canned chickpeas and cook the green beans and quinoa one day ahead. Even the kids can help with this recipe!

Kids can help by:

• Rinsing the chickpeas.
• Snapping the ends of the green beans.
• Whisking the lemon juice and olive oil.
• Laying the green beans in a row, or make a fun sun!

Ingredients:

• 1 cup dried chickpeas or 15 oz. (1 can) canned chickpeas, rinsed and sorted
• 1/2 cup dried quinoa, rinsed
• 1 pound green beans, trimmed
• 1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1/2 red onion, diced
• 1/2 cup parsley, chopped
• 1 lemon, juiced
• 2 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. In a large pot, add 1 cup dried chickpeas, or 15 oz. (1 can) canned chickpeas, and enough water to cover, about one inch. Bring to a rapid boil. Reduce heat to a simmer, cover with a lid. Simmer until chickpeas can be pierced with a knife, between 1 to 3 hours. Occasionally check and stir. Add water if necessary. If you wish to skip this step entirely, substitute the dried chickpeas with 1 BPA-free can of chickpeas.
2. In a smaller pot, add 1/2 cup dried quinoa, and 1 cup water. Cover with a lid and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook covered until the germ tail has spiraled out, about 10 minutes. Drain any excess liquid. Set aside to cool.
3. While the chickpeas and quinoa are cooking, add the 1 pound trimmed green beans to a pot of boiling water. Cook beans until crisp-tender, about 2-4 minutes. Remove from heat and add to a bowl of ice water to quickly stop the cooking or run under cold water. Drain and pat dry.
4. In a small bowl, whisk together the lemon juice from 1 lemon and 2 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil.
5. In a large bowl, toss together the chickpeas, quinoa, 1 pint cherry tomatoes, 1/2 red onion, 1/2 cup parsley, and lemon dressing. Season with salt and pepper. Chill in the refrigerator.
6. On a platter, lay the green beans in a row to follow the shape of your platter. Spoon the chickpea mixture on to the green beans. Serve chilled or a room temperature.

~ Recipe and photos by Katie Romey, A Weekday Vegan