Delicious Vegan Caesar Salad

A DELICIOUS vegan alternative to your regular caesar salad, this version is filled with a wholesome homemade dressing, garlic roasted chickpea croutons, and quick and easy to throw together plant-based parmesan. This recipe was modified from the Oh She Glows Every Day cookbook by Angela Liddon.




Ingredients

Dressing:

1/2 cup raw cashews (presoak for at least 1 hour and drain water-- or quick soak in boiling water for less than an hour until softened a bit)

1/4 cup water

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 1/2 teaspoons dijon mustard

1-2 cloves of garlic, to taste

1/4-1/2 teaspoon garlic powder, to taste

1 1/2 teaspoon vegan Worcestershire sauce (or if you don't have any, use 1 teaspoon of soy sauce, 1/2 a teaspoon of vinegar and a dash of cayenne pepper)

2 1/2 capers (or 2 green olives)

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1/2 teaspoon sea salt or to taste


Garlic Roasted Chickpeas:

1 can of chickpeas, drained, rinsed and dried with a kitchen towel

1 teaspoon olive oil

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1/8-1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper to taste


For the Salad:

2 small heads of romaine lettuce chopped

1 small-medium bunch of kale stemmed and chopped

1 batch of vegan parmesan 

Fresh ground pepper


Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Toss the chickpeas in the olive oil, garlic powder, and cayenne pepper and spread them out on the baking sheet. Roast for 15 minutes, roll them around on the baking sheet and bake for another 15-20 minutes until golden. Remove and let cool for 10 minutes. While baking you can make the dressing and prepare the rest of the salad.



Make the dressing by blending together all dressing ingredients in a high powered blender until smooth. Feel free to add extra water if you need to thin the dressing out a bit.

Place romaine and kale in a large bowl. Add dressing and toss until fully coated, or drizzle dressing over each individual serving. Sprinkle on roasted chickpeas and parmesan cheese. Garnish with fresh ground black pepper and serve.