Green Bean, Tomato, and Chickpea Salad

I like green beans. A lot. I always have and I thought everyone else did too. When David and I got married I quite naturally cooked the things that I thought were delicious and so I cooked beans often. Imagine my surprise when I found out (much later) that David in fact did not like beans. At least he hadn't before we were married. He does now - although that may have been simple defeat or self-defense. I think beans are absolutely yummy lightly steamed with a bit of butter and salt but they also "clean up" very nicely - as in this salad. I first had it when Hannah  made it for my birthday a few weeks ago. It was so good that I have been anxious to make it myself and today was the perfect day for that. I made a few simple changes to the recipe to take advantage of the fresh garden herbs and what I had on hand. So, so good. A definite 'make-again'.


This would feed four quite nicely as a vegetarian main course. The addition of some grilled chicken breast and corn bread made 6 adults and 5 "littles" very satisfied at our table today.


Green Bean, Tomato, and Chickpea Salad
(adapted from Everyday Food - June 2011)


1 1/2 lbs fresh green beans
1 lemon, zest and juice (about 3 Tbsp juice)
2 Tbsp extra virgin olive-oil
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 cups cherry tomatoes, quartered
3 whole green onions, thinly sliced
1 (19 oz) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1/2 cup crumbled feta
2/3 cup roughly chopped fresh parsley leaves
1/4 cup chopped fresh oregano


Cook the green beans in a large pot of boiling salted water until crisp-tender. (Don't over cook the beans - you really want them crisp and a nice bright green as opposed to limp and gray-ish.)  Drain and rinse under cold water to stop the cooking. 


In a large bowl whisk together the lemon juice and zest, sea salt, pepper, and olive oil. Stir in the tomatoes, onion, and chickpeas. Add the parsley, oregano, and feta. Arrange the green beans on a serving plate and top with the tomato mixture.