Chickpea Feta Salad

Ingredients:

• 3 (15 ounce) cans chickpeas, rinsed and drained
• 1 ½ cups cherry tomatoes, rinsed and halved
• ¼ cup olive oil
• ¼ cup red wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons fresh basil leaves, minced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
• ½ cup crumbled feta cheese
• salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

1. In a medium bowl, combine chickpeas, tomatoes, basil and garlic.
2. In a small bowl, whisk together olive oil, vinegar, and sugar until combined. Pour over chickpeas and toss together. Add feta cheese and toss gently. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve cold.

Yield:~5 cups bean salad (~10 servings)

Beluga Lentil Salad

• 1 cup beluga (black) lentils - picked over and rinsed off
• 2 cups water
• 1/2 cup fresh chopped tomato (i scored some heirlooms at whole foods)
• 1/2 cup chopped cucumber (i used an english cuke)
• 1/4 cup thinly sliced scallions
• 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 3 tbsp fresh parsley chopped
• 3 tbsp rinsed capers
• 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 1 tbsp light agave nectar
• kosher salt + pepper to taste

after picking over lentils for rocks and other foreign debris combine them in a pot with 2 cups of water and turn stove burner onto high. allow water to boil, then turn down to a simmer and cover pot with a lid - tilt the lid slightly to the side so that steam can escape. allow lentils to cook ~20 minutes.  i like under cooking these vs cooking them to the point where they get mushy - i like them to maintain their shape integrity and have a toothyness to them. meanwhile - place tomato, parsley, capers and green onions into a large bowl. once the lentils are cooked pour them (and any remaining water) into a colander allowing excess water to drain off. pour lentils into bowl with tomato, parsley, capers and green onions. gently stir to mix and add in olive oil, agave nectar, red wine vinegar, kosher salt and paper to taste. i typically like to serve this cold - and pop it into the fridge for around 2-3 hours before serving.

i prefer to serve my salad as a cold side dish or served on top of raw kale and lettuce. i’ve even enjoyed them for breakfast with eggs and avocado. like i said previously, lentils are a blank slate - use whatever you have on hand - be creative! go forth and lentil!