Kale Caesar Salad with Chickpeas and Avocado

This modern take on a Caesar salad features delicious cruciferous veggies, buttery avocado, salty parmesan and garlicky roasted chickpeas! Complete with a homemade creamy Caesar dressing, this kale Caesar salad is bursting with flavor and texture. Perfect for an easy and veggie-packed lunch or dinner!

this recipe

Whether it's for meal prep, potluck, or just a healthy dinner or lunch salad, this kale Caesar salad will totally hit the spot for people who love a hearty salad. It's textured and crunchy from the kale and Brussels sprouts base, plus it's packed with even more nutrients from all of the delicious add-ins - roasted chickpeas, avocado, and freshly shaved parmesan. Pair with a sandwich or piece of avocado toast with jammy eggs for a complete and delicious lunch!

And of course, our favorite yogurt-based Caesar dressing to tie it all together. This one is for people who want salads that are filling and flavor-packed. Let's make it!

Ingredients

This take on Caesar salad has two main components - the salad and the homemade dressing. Below is everything you need to make both!

• Kale - Curly or Lacinato kale both work for the base of this salad. Purple kale is fun too, if you're looking to try a new variety! Any extra kale you have can be used up in this chicken tortilla soup recipe with kale, or bake it into this crustless kale pie recipe.
• Brussels sprouts - This is not our first rodeo with Brussels sprouts in a salad (see this delish chopped Brussels sprouts salad!), and for good reason. Shaved Brussels sprouts add more cruciferous veggies and crunch to the salad base, plus they are hardy veggies that stay crunchy even after sitting the fridge. Yay for leftovers!
• Avocado - Adds a rich buttery flavor and soft texture to contract with the other crunchy salad ingredients.
• Parmesan - A classic Caesar salad ingredient, parmesan adds a delightful salty and savory flavor.
• Chickpeas - We'll roast these for protein in our salad.
• Dressing - 2% or whole milk Greek yogurt, lemon juice, garlic, anchovy or white miso paste, and Dijon.

Substitutions & Variations

To make this kale Caesar salad recipe work for you, here are a few adaptations.

• Vegetarian (aka no anchovies) - This recipe calls for my homemade Caesar salad dressing recipe, which does use anchovies. However, anchovies can be substituted! Use a tablespoon of white miso paste instead to get that salty, umami taste we all know and love. You could also omit anchovies and white miso paste and it'll still be delicious.
• Farro - Adding a cup of cooked farro to this recipe makes it even more hearty and textured. Love!
• Croutons - They're so easy to make homemade, like my whole wheat croutons. Yum!

How to Make Kale Caesar Salad

Step 1: Roast chickpeas. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees and make sure chickpeas are drained, rinsed, and dried (use a clean kitchen towel or salad spinner). Toss chickpeas in olive oil, salt, and garlic powder. Transfer chickpeas to a sheet pan and spread in an even layer. Roast at 400 degrees for 20 minutes or until crispy.

Step 2: Make base salad. While the chickpeas are roasting, chop up your kale, shred Brussels sprouts (I love using a mandoline slicer to get super thin slices!), dice avocado, and shred parmesan.

Step 3: Make dressing. Blend all dressing ingredients in a blender until completely smooth.

Step 4: Assemble! Toss salad in dressing and top with roasted chickpeas and more parm if desired.

Did you make this kale and Brussels sprouts Caesar salad? Don't forget to leave a star rating 🌟 and comment below, and tag me on Instagram and Pinterest so I can see what you made!