Giant Romaine Salad with Creamy Cilantro Dressing

This salad is giant, fresh, and delicious—the perfect thing after a busy week of too many restaurants and rushed “lunches” made of snack foods. The dairy-free dressing is made creamy by blending in chickpeas, which I didn’t think of but which I think is total genius! I actually prepared and photographed this salad two months ago but right as I was ready to write up the recipe and post it, I was hit by the first-trimester queasies and realized I had to take a blogging break since even writing about food made me ill. Thank goodness that’s all over now, and I can happily write about this salad and would just as happily eat it! I have had the type of busy week described above, so I might have to whip up this recipe soon for some much needed balance. Hope you all have a wonderful, relaxing, week, and I’ll see you next time!

Giant Romaine Salad with Creamy Cilantro Dressing

adapted from A Couple Cooks: Pretty Simple Cooking

for the dressing

• 4 scallions
• 1 medium clove garlic
• 3 Tbsp lime juice
• 1 cup packed cilantro (leaves and tender stems)
• 3/4 cup canned chickpeas (about half a can), plus 1/4 cup of their liquid or water
• 1 Tbsp dijon mustard
• 1 tsp honey
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt

for the salad

• 3 large romaine hearts, coarsely chopped
• 1 red, orange, or yellow bell pepper, sliced
• 1 Fresno chile pepper (optional)
• 3/4 cup fresh corn kernels
• 1 avocado, sliced
• 1 15-oz. can black beans, drained
• 3/4 cup canned chickpeas, drained (the other half of the can)
• 1/3 toasted pumpkin seeds

1. Make the dressing: Coarsely chop the scallions, reserving the white parts for the salad. In a blender, combine scallion greens, garlic, lime juice, cilantro, chickpeas and their liquid, mustard, honey, olive oil, cumin, and kosher salt. Blend until smooth and creamy. Taste and add a little more lime juice or salt if needed.
2. Make the salad: Place the romaine in a large bowl and top with the other salad ingredients. Drizzle generously with dressing and serve, with more dressing on the table so people can add more as needed. Any leftover dressing is delicious on grain bowls, eggs, etc.!