Carrot and Chickpea Salad with Tahini

Ingredients For The Salad

1 3/4 cups cooked chickpeas (or a 15 ounce can), drained well. (Pat dry using paper towel)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon coarse sea salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1 pound carrots, peeled and coarsely grated
1/4 cup parsley, coarsely chopped
1/4 salted pistachios, shelled and coarsely chopped

Ingredients For The Dressing

1 medium garlic clove, minced
1/4 cup lemon juice
3 tablespoons tahini (well-stirred)
2 tablespoons water (plus more if needed)
2 tablespoons olive oil
Salt
Red pepper flakes

Directions for the Salad

Preheat your oven to 425F. Toss the chickpeas with the oil, salt, and cumin until well coated. Spread on a baking sheet and roast for 15 – 20 minutes until browned and crisp, tossing them occasionally throughout to ensure they toast evenly. Set aside.

Directions for the Dressing

Whisk all the dressing ingredients together until smooth, adding a bit more water to thin it out if needed.
In a separate bowl, combine the carrots and parsley. Pour 2/3 of the dressing over and combine well. Season to taste. Garnish with chickpeas and pistachios.
If preparing this ahead of time, add the chickpeas and pistachios right before serving.

My Notes

I didn’t roast the chickpeas first, just drained from the can and rinsed well. I skipped adding any water, or salt or garlic flakes. I used 1 teaspoon of garlic powder in the dressing instead of the fresh garlic clove. I didn’t have pistachios so used about 1/4 cup of Zante currants. I used a food processor to shred the carrots.

Husband prefers this salad to the other carrot salad I made recently. I prefer the other recipe! ¯\(ツ)/¯