Lemon-Tahini Dressing

If you're not familiar with tahini, it's is a paste made from ground sesame seeds. It's rather runny, like a thin natural creamy peanut butter. It's an essential ingredient in hummus and keeps forever in the fridge.

Tahini is also good in salad dressings. When mixed with lemon juice, it transforms from a thin, oily mixture to a thick, creamy one. I'm not sure exactly how that works chemically, but it's a pretty cool transformation.

Lemon-Tahini Dressing
Adapted from Kale Salad with Creamy Lemon Tahini Dressing by Vegangela

1/4 cup tahini
1/3 cup water
Juice from 1/2 lemon
1 garlic clove, finely minced
Pinch of salt

Combine dressing ingredients in a small bowl and whisk together. Pour over salad and toss to combine.

Chickpea Salad

Serves 2

3 cups baby arugula leaves
15 oz. can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1/2 English cucumber, sliced
1/2 yellow bell pepper, cut into strips
1 tomato, cut into 1-inch pieces
1/2 cup pitted Kalamata olives
4 oz. feta cheese, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/4 cup lemon-tahini dressing (see recipe above)

Combine arugula, chickpeas, cucumber, belle pepper, tomato, olives, feta and parsley in a large salad bowl. Add the dressing and toss to combine.