Gorbanzo vegetable Salad by Robin Krause

This recipe was developed by a friend of mine, Robin Krause, who is one of the most inspiring and talented foodies I know. Seriously, her brilliance in the kitchen continuously blows me away and I am so blessed to have her live right across the street. What luck I have! I've often told her that I wish I could do a brain dump from hers to mine with all of her knowledge and I also wish that she allowed me to have her on speed dial whenever I needed an inspired recipe, because she can ALWAYS pull extraordinary out of the hiney... 

Well, now people, you are in luck to be the recipient of this recipe. If you are smart, like Robin, you will plan a dinner party right away with 6-8 of your friends just to make this salad because that is how many servings this batch makes. There are several steps to this salad, but your precious time WILL pay off. I promise. If you make this salad and it does not turn out, you didn't read the directions correctly;) 

What you need:

1. For the dressing, mix all of these ingredients together in a small bowl:

1/2 cup of Rice Wine Vinegar   

2tbs extra virgin olive oil

1/2 red onion thinly sliced

squeeze of a small whole lemon

2 garlic cloves

1/4 teaspoon of cumin

1 handful of parsley finely chopped

pinch of salt and pepper

Let sit while to make everything else

2. In a separate bowl, take a 4oz container of feta, chop and place in a bowl. Squeeze 1/2 lemon on the feta and sprinkle some crack pepper on it. Give it a toss and let sit.

3. Hard boil 5 eggs and chop. Sprinkle with a little salt and pepper.

4. Rinse and drain 1 -15oz can of garbanzo beans, pour into a bowl and sprinkle another 1/4 teaspoon of cumin on them. Toss.

5. In a large bowl add:

1 - 5oz box spinach 

1 - 5oz box arugula (the two greens are imperative for it's success - mixed greens do not cut it) 

1/2-1 small canister of baby red tomatoes cut in half

1/2 sliced english cucumber

1 chopped avocado

6. Once all of that is ready, toss all of the ingredients in the large bowl and voila. Best Salad ever. To top it off, make some delicious croutons by dicing up a fresh baguette and sauteing it in a tbsp or two of olive oil or butter for 10 minutes or until crispy and brown.