I really cannot say enough about this salad. I would have never guessed that these 6-ish ingredients would have come together in such an awesome and delicious way. This mighty green salad was tossed together in less than 5 minutes and was unbelievably satisfying. Seriously. I've eaten it about four times already this week.

The lemon juice works to brighten up the pesto and together they actually end up as a rather substantial amount of flavorful 'dressing'. Yes, that's right - you don't need to add any dressing to this salad. The ingredients work together to make their own lemony pesto dressing that is de{light}ful and actually one of my newest favorite things.

Generally speaking, I would make my own pesto as I have in the past, but occasionally time doesn't allow for me to be as in-depth with my meals as I would like to be. On top of that, I know that not everyone has the same amount of time as I do to devote to their food or kitchen. So, I like to offer up easier, faster, and just as healthy of meal options for the busy folks too!

This salad is easily made to be clean and gluten free if you're mindful of the pesto you use. I found a clean option of pesto that came in a handy squeeze tube with all of 110 calories in 1/4 c. serving of it. Perfect! Plus, it seals up and stores in my fridge for quite a while as compared to my homemade version which only lasts 2-3 days.

If you're wanting to use this salad as a side for dinner (like I did one night this week), all you have to do is half the portions so that you get 4 servings instead of the 2 that I have listed. Easy peasy lemon squeezy!

This salad would pair amazingly well with a grilled pesto chicken, a soup, or even a sandwich. I served mine alongside a fancy gluten free all natural pizza that I had picked up, but I also enjoyed it as a lunch for a couple of days this week too.

Pesto Chickpea & Avocado Salad
TheSkinnyFork.com

The Skinny:
Servings: 2 • Size: 1 Salad • Calories: 314.7 • Fat: 13 g • Carb: 40.9 g • Fiber: 12.7 g • Protein: 10.8 g • Sugar: 2.4 g • Sodium: 562.5 mg

Ingredients:
1 C. Chickpeas/Garbanzo Beans, Drained & Rinsed
2 Chives, Sliced
4 Tbsp. Pesto (I found one that was 60 cal. per 2 tbsp.)
1/2 Avocado, Sliced or Cubed
1 Lemon, Juiced
4 C. Spring Mix Salad
Salt & Pepper to Taste

Optional Topping:
Grated Parmesan or Italian Cheese

Combine the chickpeas, green onions, and pesto together in a small bowl.

Season with salt & pepper and set aside.

Place the avocado and lemon juice into a separate bowl and carefully toss together.

Toss everything together with the salad in a large bowl until the lettuce is coated evenly with the make-shift dressing.

Divide the salad between two plates and serve right away. Enjoy!