Mediterranean Zucchini and Chickpea Salad
Recently I’ve been doing recipes with corn and zucchini because those are the vegetables that are in season right now. Two delicious choices that are even better in the late summer and fall. As I’ve mentioned before, I’m a huge fan of both these veggies and as long as they’re in season, I use them. While I normally roast, sauté or grill these veggies, every so often I’ll eat them raw.
Zucchini and corn have a different flavor when raw. I can’t describe it, but there’s just something about raw veggies that makes me smile. Not only are they delicious, they taste fresh! Raw vegetables may be great for salads and dips, but they’re also good for your health. Raw vegetables are full of vitamins and promote weight loss and can also be good for your sight. There are so many reasons to eat your vegetables raw, the least of which is the fact that you don’t have to turn on your stove or dirty another pan. (If you’re a busy mom like me, you know how great that can be.) Yes, I love to eat my vegetables roasted and/or grilled, but I love eating them raw even more.
There are two ways I like to eat my raw vegetables: as sticks I can dip or chopped up in salads. They’re great in salads because they’re unexpected. I mean everyone has tomatoes, cucumbers and lettuce, but how often do you see corn or chopped zucchini. I never saw them until I started cooking regularly. Turns out using raw corn is pretty common in Mexican recipes because it adds a nice, sweet crunch while zucchini can often be found in Mediterranean dishes because of its texture and flavor. Adding each of them to a salad turns a boring bowl of greens into something really special. Something like this Mediterranean Zucchini and Chickpea Salad.
While this salad does have tomatoes and peppers, it also has that raw zucchini I was talking about. But that’s not all. There’s also feta and a whole can of garbanzo beans. It’s the feta and beans that make this salad distinctly Mediterranean. That along with the balsamic vinegar. I served this salad as a side to some chicken, but there’s no reason you couldn’t spoon it into some pita bread and enjoy it for lunch. The vegetables and garbanzo beans make this a filling and satisfying dish that’s perfect for this time of year.
Ingredients
- 2 cups diced zucchini
- 1 (15 ounce) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
- ¾ cup red bell pepper, chopped
- ½ cup purple onion, chopped
- ½ cup feta cheese, crumbled
- ⅓ cup packed fresh basil leaves, roughly chopped
- ⅓ cup olive oil
- ¼ cup white balsamic vinegar
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- ½ teaspoon oregano
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Toss zucchini, chickpeas, tomatoes, red pepper, onion, feta and basil together in a large bowl.
- Whisk the olive oil, vinegar, rosemary, garlic, oregano, salt and pepper together in a small bowl. Pour over the salad and toss to coat. Serve immediately.
