Kidney Bean & Chickpea Salad

Hello folks and welcome back to the All Things Southern kitchen. I spoke to the women of First Presbyterian Church in Vicksburg, Mississippi recently. Not only did I have a great time, but I picked up a new recipe at the luncheon, a delicious Kidney Bean and Chickpea Salad! I snagged the recipe, but because a recipe is just a suggestion, I adjusted it with some of our favorite flavors. I added a bit of this, changed a little of that until I made it my own! I’ll show you how to stir it up and you can try it on your bunch!

“Kidney Bean & Chickpea Salad”

2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 15 oz cans dark red kidney beans, rinsed
1 tsp kosher salt, divided
3 15 oz can chickpeas, rinsed
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 bunch of chopped green onions
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 1/2 c chopped cilantro
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
2 T ground cumin
1/2 cup chopped fresh mint
We’ll begin with two cloves of garlic that we’ve chopped up nice and fine. We’ll sprinkle them with a 1/2 teaspoon of salt and work it in with a fork to form a paste. Then we’ll transfer this paste to a large bowl where we’ll add another 1/2 teaspoon of salt, 1/2 cup of olive oil, and 1/2 cup of lemon juice before seasoning it with 2 tablespoons of ground cumin and 1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon. Whisk this dressing well.

Next, we’ll rinse and drain one can of red kidney beans and three cans of chickpeas, add them to our bowl and toss until they’re well coated with our dressing. This dish uses a ton of fresh herbs to ramp up the flavor! We’re going to stir in 1 and 1/2 cups of chopped cilantro, 1/2 cup of chopped fresh mint and a bunch of chopped green onions.

Heads up, y’all, you can serve this at room temperature or you can chill it, whichever you prefer, but if you’re not going to serve it immediately, hold off on the herbs until you do. That’s my Kidney Bean and Chickpea Salad, it’s simple, it’s pretty and it’s good eating, from the All Things Southern kitchen to yours~