for lunch: chickpea salad with broccoli and tomatoes.

does anyone else feel like putting together a good lunch can get tricky? lunch is one of those things if you are going to be eating "in", it can be challenging to be eating something that is actually tasty and not just a crusty sandwich.  over the past few months i have begun to get really creative with our lunch meals, i just crave an actual good meal.  i have found the key to a good lunch is... prepping the night or sunday before. lunch is usually not good when you are rushing to do it in the morning.

so one solution i have found is making lunch salads and grabbing them on the go in the morning. let me tell you... its great.  i have started doing more and more sunday "meal prep" by getting some lunch and dinner prepped on sundays to lead to non-stressful weekday meals. i have found that i eat much more healthier by doing this. so i can't really complain. also i have found that chad and i both have started to save a lot of money by my meal prepping too. it leads to less impromptu spending and random lunch expenses.

i try to have my lunches pretty vegetable heavy (basically so i can eat whatever i want that evening, and that usually means ice cream- if i am being honest ;) ) so i get creative. my ultimate go to lunch is a sweet potato, or oatmeal. but if i have been a little more prepared (which i am trying to do more and more) i usually have some type of soup and salad. lately it's been chickpea salads... my favorite being  chickpeas with broccoli and tomatoes. its a great combination of protein (chickpeas, otherwise known as garbanzo beans) to help fill you right up.. with a heavy side of vegetables... and a little bit of Dijon. num, num, num. (and if you didn't know broccoli is in season so go take it all in!)


chickpea salad with broccoli and tomatoes.

1 pound broccoli, separated
1 tablespoon dijon mustard
2 tablespoons red-wine vinegar
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 small onion, finely chopped
salt and pepper
1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
1 can (15 oz) chickpeas, drained and rinsed


1. steam broccoli (i used a stove top steamer insert) until tender, 5-7 minutes.
2. in a large bowl, whisk mustard, vinegar, olive oil, and onion. add salt and pepper to taste. then add tomatoes, chickpeas, and broccoli.
3. once the dressing is evenly mixed with the vegetables, enjoy!


 because i have been on a lunch kick, i will continue to share some of my other lunch favorites over the net few weeks, because who doesn't need more ideas of what to eat for lunch?

recipe adapted from: food