Josh Sheets’ vegetarian-friendly chickpea salad combination is the ideal recipe for when you’re ready to switch up your midday sandwich game. Chickpeas have a wonderful texture — less crunchy than a nut, more toothsome than a black bean — and this sandwich spread makes the most of them. “With the mashed chickpeas and the onion and celery, the texture has some bite to it,” says Sheets.

Curried Chickpea Salad Sandwiches | Makes 4 to 6 sandwiches
Recipe courtesy of Ol’ Dirty Sheets Hot Sauce

INGREDIENTS
3 cups cooked chickpeas (approximately 2 cans)
1/2 cup diced red onion
1/2 cup diced celery
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1-inch piece of fresh ginger, grated
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/4 to 1/2 cup vegan mayonnaise (store bought or your favorite homemade recipe)
2 teaspoons curry powder 
1/2 teaspoon salt, to taste
Whole grain bread
Sliced cucumbers, fresh greens, sliced tomatoes or toppings of your choice 
Hot sauce (optional) 

DIRECTIONS
Mash chickpeas by hand or pulse in a food processor until coarse, but not crumbly. Add the red onion, celery and parsley. Mix well. In a separate bowl, mix the garlic, ginger, lemon, mayo and spices together until combined. Add to the chickpea mixture and stir together. Refrigerate to allow the flavors to marry for 30 minutes. Take a 1/3 cup scoop of the mixture and place on whole grain bread with fresh toppings of your choice.

Topping ideas: Fresh greens (arugula or spinach), fresh cucumbers, pickled red onions, hot sauce, avocado
 
Chef’s Note: We sometimes toast our bread first, but we always add hot sauce!