NomNom: Chickpea and Tomato Salad with Fresh Basil

I know that summer is pretty much a goner but I've been having a hard time letting go of basil, my favorite summer herb. Attachment issues, much?

I'm pretty sure I ate my weights worth of caprese salad over the summer and I'm totally ok with that. Fresh mozzarella tossed wtih tomatoes and fresh basil leaves which are all together drizzled in olive oil and balsamic glaze is serious bliss to me. So when I came across a variation of the caprese salad, I knew I had to make it....call it my last ode to summer.

The original recipe called for just tomatoes, chickpeas, and basil but I decided to get fancy and add avocados and mozzarella to the mix. Not having any sort of cheese in my salad is blasphemous and that's just not allowed.

I decided that every time I get nostalgic about summer during the fall/winter I'm going to whip up this incredibly easy, flavorful, not to mention healthy, salad to take me back to those warm, sunny days.

Let's reminisce as we eat this awesome salad together.

Have a great weekend. Xo.


Ingredients (Adapted from http://greenlitebites.com/2011/06/20/chickpea-and-tomato-salad-with-fresh-basil/)

1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
About 1 pint grape tomatoes, halved (I used beefsteak tomatoes)
25 large basil leaves, chopped
1 ripe Hass avocado, cubed
Fresh mozzarella, cut into cubes
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
2 tsp olive oil
1/2 tbsp honey
pinch of salt

Procedure
Toss all the ingredients together and let the flavors settle for 25 min. in the fridge.