Versatile Marinated Chickpea Salad (gluten free with vegan options for #MeatlessMonday)

Free of gluten, nuts, soy, corn, egg, dairy free / vegan option

This simple, versatile chickpea salad comes together in about 2 minutes, and was a lifesaver the other week when we hosted three dinner parties in a row, plus a lunch.

I made a double batch and served it alongside a big bag of mixed greens and some other bowls of things as part of a salad bar. It works particularly well if you're feeding vegetarians or vegans, as it's protein-packed, filling, and flavourful. 

 As I said, this salad is also very versatile. The recipe I've written here is very bare bones, and is what I started with. However, over the few days that I served it, I altered it based on the needs of the people I was serving.

I added feta cheese, plain canned artichokes, and roasted beets. Some people preferred to eat it alone as a side dish, while others incorporated it into mixed greens and fresh spinach.

As a heads up, this gets better over time as the flavours blend, so you'll want to marinate this at least two hours before serving. Double it to have leftovers, it lasts several days in the fridge.

Ingredients for Marinated Chickpea Salad

1 1/2 cups cooked chickpeas (or 1  -15oz can chickpeas)

2 Tbsp lemon juice

1 Tbsp olive oil

2 Tbsp fresh chopped cilantro

Salt and pepper to taste

Optional: 1 clove garlic, minced, plain canned artichoke hearts, feta cheese, roasted and sliced beets (if you don't mind a pink salad). 

Toss all ingredients together and marinate at least 2 hours before serving.

If you like chickpeas, you might also like these other GF, vegan chickpea recipes: 

 GF, Vegan Sprouted Chickpea & Sweet Potato Curry Soup  

Vegan, Gluten-Free Sprouted Chickpea and Sweet Potato Burger Patties / Falafel

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