We recently spent a week in Upstate New York. It was magical. Masha has been going there every summer for the past couple of years (check out her posts with her recs here and here) and has been raving about it non-stop. We decided to go this year, before Paloma’s summer vacation was over. We drove all the way up from Florida, stopping in North Carolina, D.C., and Philadelphia, visiting friends and family. Our car generously held off on breaking down until we got back to Florida, for which we are super grateful (though now it’s stuck our garage). By the time we got to Woodstock, NY, we were ready for some deep rest. And we really got it! All our nature-centered activities (swimming holes, waterfall hikes, backyard hangs) are summed up in the little home video we filmed throughout the week (see it above). The video also includes the step-by-step process for making this super fresh Chickpea Nicoise Salad, which we cooked and thoroughly enjoyed in the backyard of our dreamy Airbnb.
We love making sandwiches with chickpea or white bean ‘tuna.’ It’s so easy to whip up a batch of it to have for lunches throughout the week. It makes for manageable school lunches and doesn’t need much in terms of sandwich add-ins. It’s super delicious and savory, too. We recently realized that it would make for the perfect, plant-based tuna stand-in in a Nicoise salad. Not sure how we didn’t think of this sooner.
This is of course not your traditional Nicoise, but all the ingredients come together so well here: buttery lettuce, boiled new potatoes, blistered green beans, olives, tomatoes, chickpea ‘tuna,’ and a punchy shallot vinaigrette. It feels so perfectly satiating and life-giving, thanks to the sun-fed summer produce that’s so good right now. We hope you’ll give this one a try and don’t forget to check out the video :)
- 1½ cups cooked chickpeas or 1 15oz can
- ½ cup toasted sunflower seeds
- ⅛ of a red onion - finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon capers
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- pinch of red pepper flakes or a dash of cayenne pepper
- juice of ½ a lemon
- splash of apple cider vinegar
- large pinch of sea salt
- freshly ground black pepper
- generous splash of olive oil
- about ¼ cup chopped dill
- 1 shallot - minced
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- generous squeeze of lemon juice
- pinch of sea salt
- freshly ground black pepper
- about ¼ cup of olive oil
- about 1 lb small/young potatoes
- sea salt
- neutral coconut, avocado, or grape seed oil
- 2 large handfuls green beens - strings removed if present
- 1 head of butter lettuce or other salad greens
- 1½ - 2 cups cherry tomatoes - halved
- about 1 cup olives - roughly chopped
- Mash the chickpeas with a potato masher or a fork in a medium bowl. Add the sunflower seeds, red onion, capers, mustard, smoked paprika, red pepper flakes/cayenne, lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, salt, black pepper, olive oil, and dill. Mash everything together lightly, and then mix thoroughly. Alternatively, add all the ingredients to a food processor and pulse into a chunky mixture. Taste for salt and adjust if needed. Set aside.
- In a small bowl, combine the minced shallot with apple cider vinegar, mustard, lemon juice, salt, and pepper and whisk to mix. Add the olive oil and whisk to emulsify. Set aside.
- Boil the potatoes in salted water until soft throughout, taking care not to overcook them. Drain and let cool. Cut the potatoes in halves and/or quarters and set aside.
- Warm the oil in a medium pan over medium heat. Add the green beans, and sauté until blistered in places. Add a splash of water, sea salt and cover with a lid. Let the beans steam through and soften for a few minutes, until soft but not mushy. Remove from the heat and set aside.
- Arrange the lettuce leaves on a large platter. Arrange the green beans, potatoes, tomatoes, and olives on top. Spoon the chickpea 'tuna' over the salad and drizzle with the vinaigrette. Enjoy!
The Modern Proper says
This trip sounds absolutely refreshing. It’s amazing how good it is to get out of the normal routine and enjoy the outdoors! And this salad looks amazing.
Anya says
Yes! So true. Thank you so much for the nice note :)
Ridhisha says
This looks delicious. I liked it so much. Thanks for sharing!
Kate says
This was absolutely fantastic! The chickpea “tuna” was out of this world and definitely better than any tuna I have eaten. This will be a new summer staple for us, thanks for the great recipe!
Anya says
Oh yay! So happy to hear that. Thanks for sharing :)