Roasted Sweet Potato and Chickpea Salad

Well, fall is definitely here! The squash and pumpkins are out on display at the local farms and Hallowe’en is only 3 days away. It is the perfect time to enjoy a Roasted Sweet Potato and Chickpea Salad!

Tonight I am attending a local plant-based potluck in hopes of meeting more of my “peeps” and to hear more stories of how this lifestyle is positively affecting lives in our community.

Everyone is to bring something to share, so last night I made a couple of different salads to arrive with. It’s always fun to try out new dishes and get inspiration for recipe ideas to test out and share with you.

Simplicity is key here. Especially if you are just starting out on a plant-based journey. Overwhelming, challenging recipes should only be attempted when you have a lot of time and patience and hopefully they will never make you feel that being plant-based is complicated! Amazing dishes can be created with complex recipes, however simple ones can taste absolutely delicious as well.

It being autumn and with root vegetables and lovely fall colored foods in abundance, I thought it would be fun to highlight this easy, yet satisfying recipe from my recipe box. I got it from my mom seven years ago when she fell in love with the taste. Mom was just here for a visit this weekend from Saskatchewan, so I figured it might be nice to honor her in my blog post.

Tiny win this visit… I finally got my mom to eat my air-fried tofu and verbally admit to enjoying it! She is a tofu skeptic extraordinaire. That was the first time she actually didn’t hate tofu! 🙂 Like I said… tiny win! She got a real feel for plant-based eating this weekend. I made two dinners at home – my Mexican Burrito Bowl and vegan pizzas loaded with veggies and nutritional yeast on a locally made coconut crust that I ordered from Urban Harvest. Friday night we went out for a delicious meal at Home Block Restaurant at Cedar Creek Winery, and yesterday, we enjoyed brunch at The Salted Caramel Kitchen in Lake Country. It is a completely plant-based restaurant in a tiny village. The food was delectable and the joint was packed. That just makes my heart sing! The meal of the visit though was at a Diwali celebration in our friends’ home. Sarita served a completely plant-based Fijian/East Indian feast for 16. She is an incredible cook who was the first to introduce me to jackfruit, which is literally now my favorite dish! We are so blessed to have such wonderful people in our lives and to have experienced such a phenomenal weekend!

So, back to the recipe at hand… (squirrel!) I would highly suggest roasting double the amount of sweet potatoes for the next day or to have on hand in the freezer. You can pull them out to add into dishes such as my Sweet Potato Burritos, or Sweet Potato Tacos recipes.

I hope you enjoy this recipe. If you do, please share with your friends and leave a comment below! I am super inspired as recently I have been contacted by numerous people who would like some tips on going plant-based due to health issues and an overall desire to be well. I love this. Keep it coming. I’m always happy to help out with any knowledge that I have on the subject. 🙂

Roasted Sweet Potato and Chickpea Salad

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Serves: 6-8 Prep Time: 15 minutes Cooking Time: 30 minutes 30 minutes

Nutrition facts: 200 calories 20 grams fat

Ingredients

• 2 sweet potatoes, scrubbed, peeled (if needed) and diced into 1/2 inch pieces
• one red bell pepper, seeded and cut in half
• 1 tablespoon of olive oil or coconut oil (optional)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cumin, ground
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2-3 cloves of garlic, chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 3 tablespoons sundried tomatoes, chopped finely
• 1 can chickpeas, drained
• 1 tablespoon of pine nuts or any other nut of choice, chopped (optional)
• 2 tablespoons cilantro, chopped

Instructions

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. 
2. Scrub and peel, then dice the sweet potatoes into uniform sizes for even roasting. Wash the red pepper and slice in half, removing and discarding the core. 
3. Put the sweet potato into a medium sized bowl, adding 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil and 1 teaspoon of ground cumin. Mix.
4. Place sweet potato chunks and the red pepper on a parchment paper covered baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes until soft. Remove from oven.
5. Once the red pepper has cooled enough, slice it into inch long slices. 
6. In a frying pan, add 1/2 tablespoon of oil on low heat.  When hot, add garlic, 1/2 teaspoon of cumin, cinnamon and salt and pepper to taste.  Cook for a few minutes until fragrant.  Add in the sliced red pepper, sun-dried tomatoes and chickpeas. Stir to coat with the spices. Add in sweet potato and stir. 
7. Pour into serving bowl.  Sprinkle on pine nuts and cilantro. 

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