Chickpea 'Tuna' Pasta Salad
The flavours of this pasta salad are sharp and deliciously tangy whilst the textures are crisp and crunchy - perfect for a summer's evening. Having said that, it's also a great way to inject a bit of edible sunshine into the cooler months of the year. Some recipes work really well for dinner and really, really well for lunch the next day. This is one of those recipes. We don't make pasta salad very often, but when we do, we're glad we did!
Serves
Ingredients
For the pasta salad
<item-todo-done>4 tbsp hummus<item-todo-done><item-todo-done>1 tbsp olive oil<item-todo-done><item-todo-done>1 x 400g can of chickpeas<item-todo-done><item-todo-done>1 celery stick<item-todo-done><item-todo-done>3 spring onions<item-todo-done><item-todo-done>1 carrot<item-todo-done><item-todo-done>1 small cornichon - or 4 capers<item-todo-done><item-todo-done>1 Juice of 1 lemon<item-todo-done><item-todo-done>1 sprig of dill<item-todo-done><item-todo-done> parsley<item-todo-done><item-todo-done> Salt & pepper to taste<item-todo-done><item-todo-done>125g fusilli pasta<item-todo-done>
To serve
<item-todo-done>1 tbsp balsamic vinegar<item-todo-done><item-todo-done>50g rocket<item-todo-done><item-todo-done>10 cherry tomatoes<item-todo-done>
Before you start
Saucepan | Boiled kettle for pasta | Colander | Fine grater or microplane | Potato Masher
Cook the pasta
- Cook the pasta according to package instructions (approx 9-11 minutes) in a big pot of boiling salted water
Prepare the fresh ingredients
- Drain, rinse and mash the chickpeas with a potato masher
- Trim and very finely chop the celery
- Trim and finely slice the spring onions
- Peel and finely grate the carrot
- Finely chop the cornichons
- Zest and juice the lemon
- Pick the dill and parsley leaves and finely chop
Drain the pasta
- Drain the pasta using a colander, drizzle over a little olive oil and toss (this will prevent the pasta from sticking) and leave to cool slightly
Make the chickpea “tuna”
- Add the hummus and olive oil to a large bowl and stir to combine
- Add the prepared fresh ingredients to the bowl and fold to combine and coat
- Taste the mixture and season to perfection with salt and pepper
- Add the pasta to the bowl and fold to combine and coat
Build the salad and serve
- Halve the cherry tomatoes
- Spoon the Chickpea “Tuna” Pasta Salad into serving bowls
- Dress the bowls with rocket and cherry tomatoes, drizzle with a little balsamic vinegar and serve immediately