Colorful Corn & Chickpea Salad

Coming at you again with another easy, fool-proof, customizable and nutritious dish!

This time we’re looking at a salad that serves as a perfect side or starter to any meal. My corn & chickpea salad recipe is perfect for any season and packs a lot of satisfying light veggie crunch. I love it because it’s hydrating and fresh tasting. It’s also full of fiber & protein from the chickpeas, corn, (~2g per tbsp chickpeas/ear of corn), and other veggies. This is one of those recipes you can throw together using whatever you have on hand, and since I always have these ingredients on hand, this is what I use:

4 ears of corn (canned corn will do if you have on hand—use 2 cans)

1 large tomato or 2 medium tomatoes, diced

1 English cucumber, diced

1 bell pepper, diced

¼ c red onion, chopped

1 can chickpeas

Juice of ½ lime

3 tbsp EVOO

Flaky sea salt & black pepper

Steps:

1. Boil corn for 5-8 minutes, drain, then set aside to cool.

2. Meanwhile, chop up other veggies and combine in a bowl with the chickpeas. When corn is cool, cut off the cob and add to the bowl. Mix with fresh lime juice, olive oil, salt, pepper, & serve!

As always, there are ways you can elevate this recipe if you’re thinking about using it as your main meal or customizing it differently:

1. Add a can of black beans for extra fiber & protein value.

2. Throw this salad over some greens and make into a bigger meal salad. Some grilled chicken would be great on top!

3. You can use whatever veggies you have to do this: raw diced zucchini, chopped celery, chopped radishes, carrots, whatever you’ve got! No need to worry about schlepping to the grocery store if you know you have produce around to make this great dish.

4. You can definitely add some more flavor factor like fresh parsley or cilantro if you have, diced jalapeno pepper if you like spicy, the possibilities are endless.

When in doubt—use what you’ve got! Healthy eating is easier than you think ;)

By Jessica Kaplan