This vegan Tex-Mex Salad Bowl features a zingy lime-based dressing, paired with crisp romaine and cooked garbanzo beans. But since a Tex-Mex style salad is traditionally made with black beans, I decided to add a jazzy twist, by substituting black bean tortilla chips as a festive garnish. The chips provide a pleasing crunch, flavor and texture, adding a wow factor to this satisfying salad.
Ingredients
SALAD
8 cups loosely packed baby romaine or chopped romaine
20 black bean tortilla chips
14 grape or cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
1 cup cooked chickpeas (garbanzo
beans), drained and rinsed, if canned
Kernels from 1 large ear of corn, cooked (or ¾ cup canned corn kernels, drained)
½ cup seeded and chopped orange or red sweet bell pepper
4 green queen olives with pimento, sliced
½ of a large avocado, peeled, pitted and sliced
SWEET AND SPICY LIME DRESSING
21/2 tablespoons vegan mayonnaise
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice
1 tablespoon maple syrup
1/16 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Instructions
For each salad, put 4 cups of lettuce into a large bowl. Arrange 10 tortilla chips around the
circumference of the bowl. Artfully arrange 14 tomato halves on top of the lettuce. Top with
one-half of the chickpeas, corn kernels and sweet peppers. Sprinkle one-half of the olives over the salad and arrange one-half of the avocado slices on top in a pleasing manner.
Put all of the dressing ingredients into a small bowl and briskly whisk until smooth (see note). Drizzle one-half of the dressing over each salad, and serve.
Notes
CHEF’S NOTE: For a creamier dressing, add more mayonnaise (up to 2 tablespoons), to taste.