Bengali-Inspired Raw Vegetable Salad

My days have been quite busy, and my nights have been so short; I feel like time just flies! For this reason, I’ve not been blogging quite so much; and instead I’ve been relying on quick, easy and nutritious dinners. Mostly vegetarian.

The other night I made this incredible salad:

It is very similar to something I had tasted–and fell madly in love with–all over West Bengal, India. It’s so simple and healthy, but it’s also incredibly addictive. Even more-so than chocolate. Yes. I said it. This vegetable salad is more addictive than chocolate.

I swear, Bengalis sure can cook!

I raided my fridge and grabbed some cucumber, jalapenos, ginger, tomatoes (which apparently are not supposed to be kept in the fridge, but I do anyway…) and cilantro. I opened a couple cans of chickpeas (garbanzo beans, also called chana), diced up an onion and juiced/zested a lime. The salad was done. It was that simple!

When I was served this salad in India, it usually contained boiled potatoes. Sometimes there would be other vegetables too. No matter the ingredients, it was always delicious! …and I always wanted more!

Because I wanted a really light dinner, I didn’t make anything else to accompany the vegetable salad. Usually I’ll serve it alongside a spicy curry or roasted chicken. Instead, I tossed a few blue corn chips (these are Food Should Taste Good brand chips, and they are amazing!) on the plate…and called it dinner.

This might just end up on my weekly menu rotation this summer. It’s absolutely perfect when the weather is hot and the there’s not enough time to fuss over anything fancy. …And it’s so healthy and colorful, how could you not want to eat it?

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Food has been on my mind constantly, but not in the obvious “I’m hungry and I want to eat” sort of way. Instead I’ve been busy picking fruits, making jam and desperately trying to keep my tomato plants alive (so far, so good!).