Grandma has been obsessing over cherry tomatoes lately. My parents have a crop share agreement with an organic farm in Connecticut, and August always means tomato season. Most of the tomatoes go towards making tomato sauce, but the cherry tomatoes are for snacking. Grandma says they’re so sweet they taste like candy, and in my opinion, they are the perfect compliment to a salty buffalo chickpea salad.
The bright cherry tomatoes do complement the salty bacon and roasted chickpeas really well. I even continued to dive deep down the sweet-and-savory rabbit hole and added shredded carrots for an even sweeter taste. The salad is topped on a bed of fresh greens (I really enjoy a Spring Mix), and drizzled with ranch dressing. Yes, the real stuff.
Roasting chickpeas is probably the most important part. It brings extra crunchiness and protein to the salad. The bacon kind of does this, but adding the chickpeas really makes you feel full. I’m not about sad little lunch salads here. My salads are always filling, flavorful, and fabulous.
To roast the chickpeas, you simply drain a can of garbanzo beans. Rinse them down, then pat dry. Remove only the skins that already fell off—not all of them will. Drizzle with a teaspoon of olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and roast in the oven at 400 for 25 minutes.
Use up leftover chickpeas ASAP. They aren’t really that great leftover, so it’s best if you consume them day of. Share this salad recipe with a friend, or even whip up my roasted chickpea fajitas for dinner that night. That way you don’t have to roast them twice—kill two birds with one stone!
To cook the bacon, although I prefer to bake it in the oven, for quick-cooked bacon I use the microwave. I use a microwave plate and cook bacon for about 3 to 5 minutes on high, depending on how many slices you’re cooking at a time. Here’s the bacon plate I use.
Is white wine necessary? No. Is it delicious with this salad, especially on a Friday afternoon? Duh.
More salad ideas
Like I said, I am not about boring salads. Here are a few of my favorites, if you need some back-to-school salad inspo.
- Lemon Arugula Salad
- Apple Kale Salad
- Caprese Salad
- Greek Pasta Salad
- Chicken Salad Lettuce Wraps
- Grilled Greek Chicken with Pita Bowls
And this buffalo chickpea salad. Enjoy!
Buffalo Chickpea Salad
Ingredients
- 1 15 oz. can garbanzo beans
- 1 tsp olive oil
- 2 slices bacon
- 2 cups salad greens loosely packed
- 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes halved
- 1/2 carrot shredded
- 1 tsp hot sauce
- 1 tsp ranch dressing
- Salt & Pepper
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
- Drain the cans of chickpeas and rinse them under the sink inside a colander.
- Spread on a paper towel and pat them dry. Some skins may fall off, that's okay! Just remove the skins that detached.
- Transfer the chickpeas to a sheet pan. Drizzle on 1 tsp of olive oil and 1/4 tsp of salt. Mix to combine.
- Roast in the oven for 25 minutes.
- While the chickpeas are roasting, cook the bacon. Lay the slices down on a bacon microwave plate. Cover the plate with a paper towel or a ventilated clear lid.
- Cook in the microwave on high for 3 to 5 minutes, depending on how crispy you like it. Once cooked, slice the bacon into smaller bite-sized bits.
- In a salad bowl (or on a plate) add the 2 cups of loosely-packed salad greens, halved cherry tomatoes, and shredded carrots.
- Divide the roasted chickpeas up into 4 servings. Toss one serving of chickpeas in 1 tsp of hot sauce.
- Top the salad with the chickpeas and the bacon bits. Drizzle on some ranch dressing.
Leave a Reply