In our search to spruce up our at-home salads, we came across this gorgeous vegan salad in The Australian Women's Weekly's 'Vegan Kitchen' cookbook and we love it so much, we had it share it here. It's bursting with flavour and only takes about 15-20 mins to prep. We love it as it is, but you can also add some roasted sweet potato, pumpkin or quinoa to it if you wanted to make it a little more filling, as well as your choice of nuts.
A little nutritional fact we learned is that the iron in plant foods like kale is not as well absorbed as that in meat, but eaten with vitamin C-rich foods like citrus, the uptake is increased.
We hope you try this, and that you enjoy it!
What you'll need:
- 1 medium orange (240g)
- 2 tablespoon sunflower seeds
- 2 tablespoon pepitas (or replace with your favourite toasted nut)
- 1 tablespoon black sesame seeds
- 250 grams kale
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 400 grams (12½ ounces) canned chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 1/4 cup (60ml) tahini
- 1/4 cup (60ml) warm water, approximately
How to make it:
- Finely grate rind from orange; reserve 1 teaspoon for the dressing. Segment orange by peeling rind thickly from orange so no white pith remains. Cut between membranes, over a bowl to catch the juice, releasing segments into another bowl. Squeeze the juice from the membranes; you will need 2 tablespoons juice for the dressing.
- To make the orange and tahini dressing; whisk tahini with reserved rind and the juice in a small bowl. Gradually add enough of the water until dressing becomes a pouring consistency; whisk until smooth. Season to taste.
- Place seeds in a small frying pan; stir seeds continuously over medium heat for 2 minutes or until they are lightly browned. Transfer to a small bowl.
- Remove stems from kale and shred it finely. Place the kale in a large bowl with oil and massage the oil into the kale until the leaves begin to soften.
- Add the chickpeas, orange segments and the dressing to the kale and toss gently to combine. Season, and serve sprinkled with toasted seeds.