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Recipe: Bean, chickpea and avocado salad

Eating healthy doesn't have to be boring. This crunchy black bean salad smothered in avocado wins in both the taste and the nutrition categories

by Kimberley Doerksen

Chickpea-avocado-salad

One beautiful sunny day in Vancouver has me excited for summer: the season of salads. There’s something about the warm weather that leaves me with a never-ending craving for salad, in any shape or form. Sometimes salads get a bad rep when they’re associated with just being a big bowl of lettuce. That’s not exactly the most appetizing option. But salads don’t have to be leaf-based or boring. Mix it up with pasta salads, bean salads, and the classic everything-in-the-kitchen salad.

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Last week, my best friend messaged me about one of our favourite bean salads that I had totally forgotten about. Stocked with plant-based protein and a refreshing lime-coriander dressing, it was hard to believe I hadn’t made it in months. There are lots of variations to this recipe too: I opted to use it as a topper to a kale-based salad while my best friend threw in quinoa for an extra punch. Then was a suggestion of adding quinoa and stuffing it into a wrap. Amazing.

Black Bean, Chickpea & Avocado Salad

Ingredients:

1 can (19oz/540 mL) black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can (19oz/540 mL) chickpeas, drained and rinsed
2 green onions, thinly sliced
2 plum tomatoes, chopped
1 sweet red or yellow pepper, diced
1 avocado, peeled, pitted and diced
¼ cup fresh coriander, chopped
1 tsp grated lime rind
¼ cup lime juice
¼ cup olive oil
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded & minced
1 clove of garlic, minced
¼ tsp each salt & pepper

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Directions:

In a large bowl toss together black beans, chickpeas, onions, tomatoes, pepper, avocado and cilantro.
In a separate bowl whisk together lime rind and juice, oil, jalapeno pepper, garlic, salt and pepper. Pour over bean mixture; toss to serve.
Serve alone, over salad, quinoa, rice, in a wrap or on toast with eggs. The options are endless.