Description
This honey mustard chickpea kale & avocado salad is a super delicious & hearty kale salad! Made with nutrient dense kale, crispy oven roasted chickpeas, a rainbow of veggies, avocado, and roasted sunflower seeds. Full of craveable texture and tons of flavor! Gluten free, vegetarian, and dairy free.
Ingredients
For the chickpeas
- 1 15.5 ounce can chickpeas
- 2 tablespoons avocado oil
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon paprika
For the salad
- One super big bunch or 2 smaller bunches is about the right amount for this recipe – washed and cut into ribbons
- 1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
- about 1 1/2 cups worth of shredded carrots
- 1/2 cucumber, sliced in half moons
- 1 avocado, diced
- 1/3 cup roasted sunflower seeds
For the dressing
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
- Drain the chickpeas and pat as dry as you can on a cutting board in between several pieces of paper towels.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat and add chickpeas – move to the oven to dry for about 5 minutes. Take out and carefully (they’ll be hot!) toss with avocado oil, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and paprika. Move baking sheet back into the oven and bake for 15-20 minutes, until crispy and browned.
- While chickpeas roast, prep the dressing and the salad.
- Combine all ingredients in your blender or food processor and process until smooth and emulsified. If you don’t have access to either a blender or a food processor you can also whisk the dressing together in a small bowl, or shake in a jar until well combined.
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Wash and de-stem kale, and cut into about 1 inch thick ribbons. To save time you can stack several leaves on top of each other, and roll them up into a round bunch, and thinly slice all the way across. Add kale to a large bowl and drizzle with about 1/3 cup of honey mustard dressing. Using clean hands, massage dressing into kale leaves, until the kale has softened slightly and soaked up some of the flavors of the dressing. If you’re not going to serve right away, you may want to stash the kale in the refrigerator until you’re ready to serve – this will keep it fresh.
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Once the kale is prepped, move on to the red pepper, carrots, cucumber, and avocado. To save time I suggest using the shredding blade on your food processor for the carrots, or buy pre-shredded carrots at the store. I would recommend saving the diced avocado until just before you toss the salad to prevent oxidation.
- When the chickpeas are done, remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly. They will continue to crisp up a bit as they cool.
- When ready to serve, add the rest of the salad ingredients to the massaged kale, reserving a few of the chickpeas to garnish if desired, and toss to combine.
- Top with crispy chickpeas and an extra sprinkle of sunflower seeds. Serve with a little more dressing on the side for those who want it and enjoy!
Notes
- We absolutely LOVE this healthy homemade honey mustard salad dressing, but if you don’t have all of the ingredients or you’re not a fan of mustard, feel free to substitute another flavorful dressing for this salad. Homemade or store bought!
- To save time consider using pre-shredded carrots, or skip roasting the chickpeas yourself and serve with a store bought version!
- Any of the veggies in this kale salad recipe could be swapped for whatever you like / have on hand.
- To make this recipe vegan substitute the honey with maple syrup.
- If you like this healthy homemade honey mustard dressing be sure to sign up for my newsletter and grab a copy of my 10 essential paleo sauces e-book!
- This kale salad will keep in the refrigerator for 2-3 days. If you’re planning on making it and eating it over a several day period, I recommend keeping the chickpeas, sunflower seeds, and avocado separate to add just before serving.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Category: salad
- Method: chopped
- Cuisine: healthy