Summer Spinach Salad with Chickpea Olive Crumble (high protein)

A satisfying summer spinach salad with the most umami-packed, crisp chickpea sun-dried tomato olive crumble! Paired with lots of fresh, crunchy veggies, and creamy, vibrant tahini lemon dressing is a perfect hot weather dinner. (gluten-free, soy-free, nut-free, 23g protein high protein)

This is a fantastically hearty summer spinach salad. It has so many textures and flavors, and it has 80 grams of protein for the entire salad. That’s 20 grams of protein per serving. For a salad!

There is protein from the chickpeas, from the hemp seeds, and from the nutritional yeast in the chickpea crumble. There’s also protein from the tahini in the dressing, the non-dairy yogurt (depending on the brand), as well as a little protein from the greens that you use in the salad. You can amp up the protein even more by sprinkling it with some hemp seeds before serving or adding some of my tofu bacon bits, or other high protein toppings.

The salad has this creamy texture from the dressing, the crunch from the fresh veggies, and crispiness from the chickpea crumbles, which we bake until they’re crispy-crunchy. The umami comes from the olives and the sun-dried tomato, and the refreshing, fresh flavor comes from lemon zest, the cucumbers, and any other crunchy veggies and greens. 

It’s just a fabulous combination of flavors and textures. The combination of tahini and yogurt helps mellow tahini’s strong flavor and makes for a rich, creamy dressing.

Why You’ll Love this Summer Spinach Salad

• incredible combination of flavors and textures! Crunchy veggies, creamy dressing, and savory, crisp chickpea-olive crumble.
• easy to make in about 30 minutes
• packed with veggies and protein
• naturally gluten-free, soy-free, and nut-free

Ingredients

• sun dried tomato and Kalamata olives – These add a ton of umami to the chickpea crumble!
• chickpeas – You can use canned or homemade. You can also replace the chickpeas with lentils or white beans if you prefer.
• hemp seeds – Add extra protein to the crumble. You can use walnuts instead, if you prefer.
• dried spices – For the crumble, you will need oregano or a mix of oregano, thyme and basil along with garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and red pepper flakes. For the dressing, use garlic powder, oregano or dill, and salt. You’ll also use some fresh herbs of choice, like parsley, cilantro, or green onion.
• nutritional yeast – Adds protein and umami to the crumble.
• oil – To add moisture and help the crumble crisp in the oven.
• veggies – Use your favorite mix of leafy greens plus chopped cucumber and sliced cherry tomato. You can add other crunchy veggies of choice, like carrots or celery, if you like.
• tahini and yogurt – These are the base for your creamy dressing. The yogurt balances out the strong flavor of the tahini to make the dressing so creamy! Use soy-free and/or nut-free non-dairy yogurt, if needed.
• lemon – The lemon juice goes into the dressing, and then we top the salad with lemon zest for such a refreshing flavor!
• garnish – I already mentioned the lemon zest, and we will also garnish this salad with vegan parmesan (optional), microgreens, and cracked black pepper. Use soy-free and/or nut-free vegan parmesan, if needed. You can also garnish with pickled onion , if you like.

How to Make a Summer Spinach Salad

Preheat the oven to 400°F (205° C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. To a food processor, add the sun-dried tomato and pulse until chopped into a coarse mixture. Then add the rest of the crumble ingredients, and 1 teaspoon of the oil, and pulse for about 5 seconds, then stop and pulse again until the mixture becomes a coarse meal. Everything should be chopped but not a pasty pate.

Transfer the mixture to the parchment-lined baking sheet, and spread it out. If it’s pretty chunky, break it into smaller chunks. Drizzle the remaining teaspoon of oil over the mixture. Bake for 15 minutes, then move the mixture around on the pan, so that any larger pieces in the center can crisp up. Move the center pieces to the outer edges and the pieces from the edges to the center of the pan. Continue baking for another 5 to 10 minutes, depending on your texture preference. If you like it really crisp, bake longer, but some of the smaller crumbs can get too roasted. Remove from the oven.

Chop your greens, cucumber, and tomatoes, if you haven’t already, and add them to a bowl.

Add all the dressing ingredients to a small bowl and mix really well. Add water, as needed, to make a pourable dressing. Depending on the consistency of your tahini and non-dairy yogurt, you might need 1 to 3 tablespoons of water. Taste and adjust flavor, adding more salt if needed. You want it to be on the saltier side, since there is no salt on the greens and the veggies.

Drizzle about 2/3 of the dressing into the salad bowl and toss well. Top the salad with the warm chickpea crumbles. Add sprouts on top, if you want, then drizzle the remaining dressing on top. Garnish with lemon zest, black pepper, and vegan Parmesan, and it’s ready to serve. You can serve the salad as-is or toss everything together before serving. I like to keep the crumbles on top, so they stay crisp, especially if I’m serving for a get-together or lunch.

What to Serve with Summer Spinach Salad

This is a delicious meal on its own, but you can also serve with some crusty bread, naan, garlic bread, etc.