As nutritious as it is delicious, this chickpea studded Kale Crunch Salad features a perfect medley of beans and veggies tossed in a flavorful honey mustard vinaigrette!
I don’t have a ton to say about this salad other than it’s absolutely divine and you should 110% make it as soon as humanly possible.
It’s another one of those dense bean salad situations that is great the first day and still fabulous the following days so you can meal prep it for a few days worth of faceplants if you’d like to get your lunches sorted for the week.
Chopping everything up nice and small ensures you get all the amazing flavors and textures in every bite. Salads are normally a fork’s job but honestly, I love to just grab a spoon and dive right in.
Ingredients Needed
For the ultimate kale crunch salad, we’ll use a combination of kale, purple cabbage, broccoli, carrots, green onions, and bell pepper. I use red bell pepper for a kiss of sweetness but green, orange, or yellow bell peppers will all taste great here!
Chickpeas and chopped almonds add extra protein, fiber, and crunch to each bite. I like to use roasted salted almonds since the little extra saltiness seasons the salad and helps amp up the flavor of the other ingredients.
For the dressing, we’ll combine extra virgin olive oil with white wine or apple cider vinegar, dijon mustard (grey poupon country dijon is my favorite), honey, garlic and some salt and pepper. It’s super simple and easy to make but results in a sweet and tangy honey mustard vinaigrette that compliments the veggies so well!
Want some extra crunch? You can even add some crispy tortilla strips or crispy wonton strips on top if you’d like! Both are fantastic options.
You can round out the meal with half a sandwich or a veggie burger. If you’re needing a carnivore twist, adding shredded rotisserie chicken to this salad is absolutely delicious or you can serve up the salad as a side for your favorite main dish.
I love this bad boy all on it’s own and find the baller blend of protein and fiber in this plant-based salad to be super filling and satisfying!
Kale Crunch Salad with Chickpeas
This rockin’ recipe yields 4 side salads or 2 large meal-sized salad bowls. If you need to serve a crowd at a party or potluck, or have a lot of meal prepping to do, feel free to double the recipe!
HONEY MUSTARD VINAIGRETTE
FIRST MAKE THE DRESSING
-
Peel, smash, and mince garlic and add to a small bowl.
-
Add remaining dressing ingredients and whisk well, adding any extra honey desired after tasting. I’ll sometimes add an extra teaspoon to balance the flavors but keep some of the tartness as it’s great with the beans and veggies.
NEXT PREP THE SALAD
-
Remove the kale leaves from the firm center stalk and finely chop into small pieces. I call this my kale confetti and when it’s nice and small it’s so easy to eat!
-
Add kale to a large salad bowl and drizzle a spoonful of dressing over the greens. Use your hands to massage the dressing into the leaves for extra tender kale.
-
Chopping the vegetables in to small pieces will help you get a little bit of everything in each bite! Thinly slice cabbage and either use pre-shredded carrots or julienne. Give both the cabbage and carrots a rough chop for smaller pieces and add to the bowl with the kale.
-
Finely chop bell pepper, broccoli, green onions, and almonds. Add to the salad along with the drained chickpeas. Whisk the dressing once more and pour over the top. Mix well and enjoy!
Nutrition Facts below are estimated with dressing included using an online recipe nutrition calculator. Adjust as needed and enjoy!
Calories: 297kcal, Carbohydrates: 44g, Protein: 14g, Fat: 17g, Saturated Fat: 2g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g, Monounsaturated Fat: 10g, Trans Fat: 0.003g, Sodium: 274mg, Potassium: 741mg, Fiber: 13g, Sugar: 14g, Vitamin A: 6167IU, Vitamin C: 94mg, Calcium: 176mg, Iron: 5mg
Behind the Blog
We haven’t caught up in FOREVER! How are you!? I’m still recovering from some surgical work I had done on the weak little elbow I tore axe throwing last Summer. I’m so ready for this to heal already. I need to get back to my happy place at the gym and it’s driving me bonkers that I can’t.
I also can’t lift my unusually heavy DSLR camera at the moment (RUDE!) so I’ve been a bit twitchy over that as well. Luckily I photographed a ton of recipes pre-op, so I have lots to share with y’all these coming weeks!
All this mandatory rest has given me ample time to catch up on everything TV and I’m not mad about it. I’ve been watching “School Spirits” with the tween, “Scrubs” with the whole family, and “Rooster” with Paul. I started “Something Very Bad is Going to Happen” last night which is right up my alley with the creepy suspense!
What else should I add to the watchlist?
Peas and Crayons is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to amazon.com and affiliated sites at no cost to readers.