Kale Caesar Pasta Salad
If you love the flavor of a Caesar salad, then you’ll adore this pasta version, served chilled with roasted herb chickpeas and crunchy sliced almonds.
We are being blessed with another weekend of warm weather here in the Chicago suburbs. So I came up with this kale caesar pasta salad to enjoy because I know cooler temps are one their way and soon my kitchen will be filled with stick-to-your-ribs comfort food meals (healthy, of course) like chili, roasted vegetables and braised beef recipes. But until then, I am satisfying my pasta salad craving by bulking it up with hearty kale and roasted chickpeas. Roasting chickpeas makes them the perfect stand in for croutons, amping up the protein in recipes and adding a delicate crunch. Roasted chickpeas lose their crunch quickly, but still taste great and add texture to salads.
The dressing is a light, salty Caesar make with almond milk. 2% milk would also work. This is not a super creamy dressing but it can be made thicker by adding 1/2 cup mayonnaise or greek yogurt to the other ingredients instead of the almond milk. I opted to keep it light since this is a pasta salad and already quite the meal in itself. Grilled chicken or steak can also be added for the carnivores in your family.
Ingredients
- 3 cups dry whole wheat fusilli pasta
- 4 cups chopped kale
- 1/3 cup pitted kalamata olives
- 1/4 cup sliced almonds
- 1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 (15 oz) can chickpeas, drained
- 1 T olive oil
- 1/4 t dried dill
- 1/8 t paprika
- 1/8 t onion powder
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp dijon mustard
- 2 tsp anchovy paste
- 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 clove garlic
- 1/2 cup parmesan cheese
- 1/4 cup almond milk (unsweetened)
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
Instructions
- Combine ingredients for dressing in a blender and blend until smooth. Pour into a glass jar. Preheat oven to 350F. Blot chickpeas dry with a paper towel and place in a small bowl along with other ingredients. Toss and pour onto a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Bake 40 minutes, rotating chickpeas halfway through roasting with a spatula. Remove from oven and set aside.
- While chickpeas cook, boil pasta according to package directions. During the last minute of cooking, add kale to pasta water.
- Strain and run cold water over pasta. Pour into a large bowl and add olives. Pour dressing over and toss to coat. Chill 1 hour. Top with parmesan cheese, almonds and chickpeas. Serve chilled.
