Deliciously Ella’s Chickpea and Squash Salad

This may sound simple but – trust me – it’s so much more than it seems. I first made this for a collaboration with a café in London and it was such a hit that I knew I had to share it with you all, too! It’s a great simple dinner for one, or you can make a huge bowl of it to serve with friends alongside lots of my Black Bean Burgers.

Serves 1

Ingredients

For the salad
120g chunk of butternut squash
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon dried mixed herbs (I use herbes de Provençe)
salt and pepper
olive oil
80g chickpeas, drained and rinsed
½ teaspoon chilli powder
big handful of rocket (30g)
40g sun-dried tomatoes, chopped

For the dressing
1 tablespoon olive oil
½ tablespoon apple cider vinegar
½ teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon honey

Method

Preheat the oven to 220°C (fan 200°C).
Peel the squash, then cut it into small bite-sized pieces. Place on a baking tray with the paprika, mixed herbs, a little salt and olive oil. Bake for about 30 minutes, until tender.
Place the chickpeas on a separate baking tray with the chilli powder, toss well to coat and bake for 20 minutes, until they’re firm but not too crunchy.
Mix all the dressing ingredients together, seasoning with a bit of salt and lots of pepper.
Once the chickpeas and squash have cooked and cooled, mix them with the rocket and sun-dried tomatoes, then pour on the dressing and toss everything together.

Tweak It
If you don’t have any squash then try using sweet potato instead, it tastes awesome in this.

Extracted from Deliciously Ella Every Day by Ella Mills, published by Yellow Kite,
Photography by Clare Winfield