Chickpea Salad

This is a great side for a BBQ. It is hearty and pairs well with most meats. You can change it up a bit by adding feta or goat cheese, but I tend to make it without cheese. This is usually a favorite! I also make this on week nights in the summer and it lasts us for a couple of meals. It tastes even better on day 2!

Makes 6-8 Servings (side dish)

Ingredients:

• 1 can chickpeas (drained and washed)
• 1 English cucumber (seeds removed and diced)
• 3 vine tomatoes (seeds removed and diced) or 20 cherry tomatoes (cut in 1/4ths)
• 1/2 red pepper (seeds removed and diced)
• 1/2 red onion (finely diced)
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 tbsp white balsamic vinegar
• 1 small shallot (finely diced)
• Handful parsley (finely chopped)
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1/2 tsp lemon pepper
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp cumin
• 1 tbsp lemon juice

Instructions:

1. Place chickpeas, cucumber, tomatoes, red pepper and red onion in a bowl and mix together.
2. In a separate bowl, mix the vinaigrette by adding olive oil, vinegar, shallots, parsley, and all the spices. Mix thoroughly.
3. Add vinaigrette to the chickpea mixture and mix well. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
4. Refrigerate for at least an hour and serve with your favorite main dish.