Kale Apple and Chickpea Salad with Vegan Feta
This Kale Apple and Chickpea Salad with Vegan Feta is loaded with amazing flavours! It’s a great meal prep salad that’s loaded with protein and is sweet and crunchy!
When I made my 2019 goals for the year, I decided to make them super realistic goals that I wanted to follow, not strict and rigid goals that would make me feel like a failure if I didn’t. One of those goals was “have three salads a week”. Something simple that I could start incorporating to help ensure that I was packing way more veggies and fibre into my diet.
It wasn’t easy at first, but fast forward to now and it’s pretty routine for me to serve a salad alongside almost every single meal, sometimes including breakfast. One of the ways I did that was not only literally writing it down, I put a salad on my vision board. Yup, I really did do that, and today I’m making my own version of the salad in that photo – Kale Apple and Chickpea Salad with Vegan Feta!
It’s funny that I’ve been staring at a version of this salad since January. It’s just occurring to me to try and recreate it. In an attempt to give you easy and delicious recipes before we head off to New York then South East Asia for a month, I looked around my office and saw the salad. The salad on my vision board is from SELF magazine and features apples, kale and chickpeas.
I was actually drawn to the photo originally because of two things. It looks absolutely delicious and like the kind of salad I could whip up easily. So it makes sense to actually pull inspiration from it! Today’s salad also features apples, kale and chickpeas, and I’m also making a vegan feta for it. If you can, you could buy one, or follow along my vegan feta recipe. I’m making one of my favourite vinaigrettes also which I feel will be very complimentary.
Kale Apple and Chickpea Salad with Vegan Feta
This Kale, Apple and Chickpea Salad with Vegan Feta has so many delicious flavours, textures and nutritious components. It’s a great balance of fibre, protein thanks to the chickpea and tofu feta, fruits and veggies and will keep you full. It’s great for a quick cold lunch and so also, a picnic! Plus, you can meal prep it!
YOUR QUESTIONS ANSWERED
Q: I don’t like/can’t manage raw kale. Can I use something else?
A: So massaging the kale actually helps to break it down, so that the digestion is easier on your stomach. That being said, yes! Feel free to sub arugula or lettuce, but I would add the dressing right before eating so it isn’t soggy.
Q: Can I use a different vinaigrette?
A: Yes! You can use my sweet orange vinaigrette instead or my balsamic vinaigrette.
Q: Where can I find more salad recipes?
A: I have a Salads section on my recipe index!
Kale Apple and Chickpea Salad with Vegan Feta
Ingredients
Dressing
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup or agave nectar
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
Salad
- 6 cups kale, de-stemmed, washed and torn
- 1 cup chickpeas
- 1 apple, sliced thinly
- 3 tablespoons toasted pecans
- 3 tablespoons crumbled vegan tofu feta cheese or store-bought vegan feta
Instructions
Salad
- In a bowl, place the kale. Add in half the dressing and massage into the kale for two minutes, until the kale has been broken down. Add the rest of the ingredients and the rest of the dressing. Toss to combine. If you'd like, place the pecans and feta cheese on top and toss them in a bowl first them sprinkle on top.
Maple-Apple Vinaigrette Dressing
- Whisk or shake the ingredients together in a jar with a lid. Enjoy!
Notes
Disclaimer: Although jessicainthekitchen.com attempts to provide accurate nutritional information, kindly note that these are only estimates. Nutritional information may be affected based on the product type, the brand that was purchased, and in other unforeseeable ways. Jessicainthekitchen.com will not be held liable for any loss or damage resulting for your reliance on nutritional information. If you need to follow a specific caloric regimen, please consult your doctor first.
I love the combination of apple and chicken. Thanks for sharing this.
love your recipe.
Thank you,
John Arrnol
Hi John! Thanks so much for reaching out! We hope you enjoy it!
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Delicious salad! I really like the dressing and massaging it into the kale certainly helped the kale taste all the better. I made the tofu feta as directed, but mine didn’t have a lot of flavor. I still liked it in the salad for some extra protein. I also added some coconut “bacon” I had made and that added a nice bit of extra flavor as well. I will be making this recipe again for sure–thanks for another great one!
Wow thank you so much Kelly! It means a lot to us that you like it.
So delicious and so easy! The longest part of prepping was getting my slow oven to heat up for toasting pecans! Took minutes to prepare and easily accessible ingredients. Love that I can make this as a fast lunch while working from home or an easy dinner on a busy night.
We’re so happy that you enjoyed this recipe Mel! Thank you so much for reading and leaving such a nice comment!
This recipe was so delicious, refreshing and light! The dressing made the dish. I topped with some Gardein chicken tenders. A big hit!!
We’re so happy that you enjoyed this recipe Olivia! Thank you so much for reading and leaving such a nice comment!
I’m pretty sure I’ll be making this salad weekly from here on out. The chickpeas kept me full, the dressing was delicious and quick to prep, and the blend of flavors was perfect! I haven’t quite made the jump to full vegan yet, so I went with dairy feta. I look forward to trying the vegan version in the future!