Two Bean Salad with Garlic Lemon Vinaigrette

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Simple, easy to make, yet so full of flavor, this Two Bean Salad with Garlic Lemon Vinaigrette is a great side dish for a summer barbeque, it is also wonderful as a meatless main dish.

Two Bean Salad with Garlic Lemon Vinaigrette

I’ve recently been sharing a lot of my favorite summer time dishes, such as my Bacon Arugula Tomato and White Bean Pasta Salad, my Curried Quinoa and Chickpea Salad with Carrots, Apples & Raisins and my Greek Quinoa Salad, that are wonderful for picnics, potlucks and barbeques and are also great for healthy and satisfying main dishes.

Today I’m sharing another one of my favorites, this delicious and flavorful Two Bean Salad with Garlic Lemon Vinaigrette. This dish is so simple and easy to make and is so versatile, it is a summer staple at my house. I make it regularly as a side dish for barbeques, as a meatless main dish, as well as to take along on picnics.


The two beans in this salad are two of my favorites — chickpeas and black beans. The beans are tossed in a bright and flavorful garlicky lemon vinaigrette along with some fresh parsley and red onion. Altogether this salad is vibrant, fresh and so full of flavor.

Two Bean Salad with Garlic Lemon Vinaigrette

I made a batch of this Two Bean Salad with Garlic Lemon Vinaigrette last week, when my parents were visiting us at our lake house in Grand Isle, Vermont. We enjoyed it as a side dish along with grilled chicken and a tossed green salad, it was a delicious and easy meal.

The next day, I packed the leftovers in our picnic lunch, for a day trip to Waterbury and Stowe, Vermont. My parents and I, first took the kids to the Ben and Jerry’s factory in Waterbury. We had a great time on the tour learning about the company and watching the ice cream being made. Afterwards, the adults enjoyed the free samples of Salted Caramel ice cream, the kids not so much. Luckily we were able to purchase their favorite flavors at the scoop shop outside. My mom took this really cute photo of my twin 3-year-old girls posing as the iconic Ben and Jerry.

Afterwards, we drove north towards Stowe, on scenic Routes 100 and 108, in search of a nice spot to enjoy a late picnic lunch. We settled on a gorgeous picnic area that is part of Smugglers’ Notch State Park. At this point it had started to sprinkle, but the area was wooded and we were able to push a picnic table under a canopy of trees and enjoy our picnic, including this wonderful Two Bean Salad with Garlic Lemon Vinaigrette, in relative comfort. There was a babbling stream down a little path and my son had a great time, jumping from rock to rock in the stream, occasionally running back up to our table to take bites of his sandwich.

After our picnic, we continued north on Route 108, which unbeknownst to me is the “notch road” and goes through the Smugglers Notch, which is a mountain pass, with an elevation of 2,170 feet (660 meters), separating Mount Mansfield, the highest peak in the Green Mountains, from Spruce Peak and the Sterling Range. (Prior to this trip, I had only travelled in this area during the winter, when this road is closed.)

I quickly figured out that this was no ordinary road, as we kept climbing and climbing, the road getting narrower and narrower, until the center line disappeared and we were literally weaving between gigantic boulders jutting out into the road. It was a white knuckle ride for me, but the kids, especially my 7-year-old son, loved it, once we were through, he immediately asked to do it again. The whole area is so beautiful that we will certainly return soon, perhaps taking the north to south route instead.

Two Bean Salad with Garlic Lemon Vinaigrette

This delicious Two Bean Salad with Garlic Lemon Vinaigrette is a wonderful side dish for all sorts of grilled entrees, it is also wonderful along with some grilled veggies and a green salad for a meatless meal. This flavorful salad can be made ahead of time and keeps well in the refrigerator, so is also a great dish for picnics and potlucks.

So, tell me, what is your favorite bean salad? Have you ever travelled a notch road? Let me know me know in the comments below!

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Two Bean Salad with Garlic Lemon Vinaigrette

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 10 minutes

Yield: 4 main dish servings or 8 side dish servings

Two Bean Salad with Garlic Lemon Vinaigrette

Simple, so easy to make, yet full of flavor, this Two Bean Salad with Garlic Lemon Vinaigrette is a great side dish for a summer barbeque, it is also wonderful as a meatless main dish.

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons lemon juice (from about 1 lemon)
  • 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon finely minced garlic (see Notes)
  • 1 (15.5 oz) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
  • 1 (15.5 oz) can black beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1/4 cup diced red onion
  • 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
  • salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

Instructions

  1. In a medium sized mixing bowl, whisk together the lemon juice, red wine vinegar, olive oil and garlic.
  2. Add in chickpeas, black beans, red onions and fresh parsley. Toss to combine.
  3. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground pepper.
  4. Serve or refrigerate for up to 3 days.

Notes

The garlic flavor really comes through in this dressing, if you prefer a less strong garlic flavor, start with 1 teaspoon of garlic, taste and then add more if desired.

http://joylovefood.com/two-bean-salad-with-garlic-lemon-vinaigrette/

 
Two Bean Salad with Garlic Lemon Vinaigrette

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30 comments

  1. Pingback: Creamy Broccoli and Cucumber Salad - Joy Love Food
  2. Lorelai @ Life With Lorelai says:

    Joy, your food always make me hungry! It looks beautiful and I bet it tastes even better. Thanks for sharing at the #HomeMattersParty – we love partying with you! Hope to see you next Friday — when we are have a VERY SPECIAL PARTY! Don’t miss it… 🙂

    ~Lorelai
    Life With Lorelai

  4. Lou Lou Girls says:

    Oh my! This looks so fabulous! Pinned and tweeted. Please join us tonight at 7 pm, and party with us. I can’t wait to see your new masterpieces or amazing classics! Lou Lou Girls

  5. Ashley says:

    This looks delicious! Thanks for sharing the recipe with us at the Merry Monday link party. I hope you’ll join us again next week. Sharing your post on Twitter!
    Ashley recently posted…Merry Monday 63My Profile

  14. Karen Patten says:

    This looks amazing! I love the lemon / parsley combination and always feel like I can never have too many recipes that are cool and refreshing for summer 🙂

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