Interstate Eats and Adventures

I definitely win friends with salad. I love salads of all kinds, especially the leafy green kind with a French vinaigrette that I throw together with whatever type of vinegar and herbs I have on hand. Everyone loves my vinaigrette. But, sometimes I get vegetabled and saladed out. 

While camping at Flow Fest in Ascutney, Vermont last weekend, we hit the food area at the expo to get a break from campervan cuisine. I was uninterested in a salad but ordered one anyway because I felt like I should eat vegetables. It was a kale caesar salad from the Butcher & Pantry. I have no regrets. It was creamy, kale deliciousness with crunchy croutons every other bite. 

So, when I saw beautiful dark green Lacinato kale placed on top of the Farmer Dave’s CSA box of vegetables we pick up every week, I knew I was going to make a kale caesar salad except I would go a little rogue with chickpea croutons and a few cherry tomatoes sliced in half.

These savory roasted chickpeas are the ones I use for croutons. These are the very same ones I use for snack packing for long campervan trips. 

Roasted Chickpeas

• 28 ounce can of chickpeas (any brand)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

Instructions:

1. Rinse chickpeas in fine mesh sieve or colander.
2. Gently rub the chickpeas dry with paper towels and pick out the chickpea skin that gets sloughed off during drying. It’s okay if you don’t get all the skin because whatever is left will crisp up in the air fryer.
3. Toss with seasoning mix and the 1 tablespoon olive oil.
4. Turn on air fryer at 400 degrees and let warm up a couple of minutes.
5. Pour chickpeas into air fryer and cook for about 12 minutes.
6. Open the fryer a few times, toss the chickpeas, and check for doneness. You want them to be crunchy on the outside and still creamy inside.