Collard & Dried Tomato Salad with Roasted Chickpeas

Last summer, we had a bounty of tomatoes in our garden - a bounty so large, I was unable to keep up with eating, canning, and freezing them, and had to explore other preservation options.  Dried tomatoes to the rescue!  Tomatoes are surprisingly easy to dry in a very low oven, and will store, once dried, almost indefinitely in the freezer.  If you don't have your own stash of dried tomatoes, pick some up at the store this week to add rich flavor to this unique salad!

YIELD: 4 quart-sized salads

INGREDIENTS:

• 28 oz can chickpeas, rinsed, drained, and patted dry
• 7 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, divided
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp sweet paprika
• kosher salt and black pepper, to taste
• 1 clove garlic
• zest and juice of 1 lemon
• 1/2 tsp chili flakes
• 4 tsp red wine vinegar
• 1/2 c dried tomatoes, sliced
• 4 green onions, thinly sliced
• 1 c cilantro leaves
• 1 c mint leaves
• 1 large bunch collard greens, stemmed and thinly sliced
• 1/2 c pine nuts, toasted

DIRECTIONS:

1. Make the roasted chickpeas: preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.  Toss the chickpeas with 1 tbsp oil, cumin, paprika, salt, and pepper.  Bake the chickpeas for about an hour, or until evenly dried, crispy, and golden brown.  Cool.
2. Make the lemon vinaigrette: combine the garlic, lemon juice and zest, chili flakes, red wine vinegar, remaining olive oil, and salt and pepper (to taste) in a pint-sized mason jar.  Puree and emulsify the dressing using a handheld stick blender.  (Alternatively, puree and emulsify the dressing in a blender or mini food processor.)
3. Pack the salads: divide the dressing evenly between each of 4 tall quart-sized containers.  Layer the dried tomato, green onions, cilantro, mint, and collard greens in the jars.  Divide the chickpeas and pine nuts evenly among 4 snack-sized zip-top baggies, one for each salad.  Refrigerate until serving.
4. Enjoy your salad: invert your salad onto a plate or into a bowl.  Top with chickpeas and pine nuts.

TIME-SAVING TIPS: Substitute your favorite store-bought lemon vinaigrette for the homemade vinaigrette.  Substitute store-bought roasted chickpeas for the homemade roasted chickpeas.  Substitute pre-washed, bagged baby kale for the collard greens.

SPECIAL DIET SWAPS: This salad is vegan and gluten-free as-is.  For a nut-free salad, substitute roasted sunflower seeds for the pine nuts. 

Food styling, photography, and infographics by Robert Campbell.