A couple years ago my fiend Kristi came over for dinner and brought this salad. It was simple and fresh and delicious and Alex and I have never forgotten it. In fact, we make it a few times a month. It's super easy, and pretty filling because of the chickpeas. It's a great summer dish, but really, we eat all year around because we love it so much. Kristi, if you are reading this: thank you for introducing us to this salad!
Ingredients:
2 cans of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
2 large cucumbers
1/2 of 1 red onion
1 big handful of fresh dill, or 2 tablespoons of dried dill
2 tablespoons of olive oil
2 tablespoons of white wine vinegar
salt
pepper
Put rinsed chickpeas into your favorite salad bowl.
Prepare your cucumbers: You can either peel them, or leave the peel on, or use a zester to half peel them, like I did. Cut the cucumbers in half lengthwise, then in half again lengthwise, so you have 4 wedges. Cut off the corner of each wedge, thus removing the seeds. This is something I didn't used to do, but I've found that the texture is more pleasant without the cucumber seeds. After you've cut out the seeds, cut each wedge in half lengthwise one more time and then chop them up into small pieces. Add these to the chickpeas.
Cut onion into thin half-moon slices and add to the salad.
If you are using fresh dill, remove the larger center stems, coarsely chop it, and add it the the salad bowl. If you are using dried dill just add it right into the salad. Add olive oil, vinegar, and salt and pepper to taste. Toss well.
This salad can be served right away but tastes best if the cucumbers and chickpeas have had time to marinade a little. I like to let it sit in my refrigerator for about an hour before serving. Toss it a few times while it's sitting, and again before serving. Add a baguette and some goat cheese, open a bottle of white wine and you've got yourself a very respectable and very easy summer dinner. Enjoy!
