Refreshing High Protein Chickpea Quinoa Mason Jar Salads

This year has had a lot going on for our family, all blessings. Life doesn’t slow down. We celebrated our daughter’s first birthday in February and then found out we were expecting our second child just a few days later. All while I am still trying to advance in my career. The blog seems to be on the back burner but I still put great recipes aside for future posting.

Spring is in full swing in Colorado and I am loving the weather. We’re gearing up to start camping again, and I plan on taking a few of these jars for on the road meals. Dump the jar in a bowl and enjoy, no heating up. These are perfect any time of the year, but they really hit the spot in the spring with the fresh veggies and lemon juice.

This recipe is for 10 mason jars. We make 5 lunches for both my husband and I. Eat the jars within 5 days of making them. Adjust the ingredients based on how many portions you need.

Ingredients

• 6-15.5oz can of Chickpeas (Approx 10oz per serving)
• Paprika to Taste
• Garlic Powder to Taste
• Salt to Taste
• Pepper to Taste
• 5 Tbsp Olive Oil divided (1 1/2 tsp Per Serving)
• 2.5 Cups Dry Quinoa (1/4 dry Per Serving)
• 10 Roma Tomatoes
• 5 Lemons
• 3 Cucumbers
• 2 Large red Onions
• Bundle of Fresh Cilantro
• Bag of Spinach (optional)

Utensils

• 10 Large Mason Jars
• Baking Sheet
• Foil
• Lemon Juicer
• Knife
• Cutting Board
• Chopper (definitely makes this go quicker)
• Measuring Cups & Spoons
• Large Pot with Lid
• Spatula
• Food Scale, optional to get exact distribution

Preheat the oven to 425 and prep the chickpeas. Drain and rinse them and pat them dry with a paper towel. Put foil on the baking sheet then put the chickpeas on top. Spray with a generous amount of olive oil. Then sprinkle paprika and garlic power on top, give everything a good mix. Bake for 15 minutes. Once the chickpeas are done, change to Broil for another 3-5 minutes until they have a nice crisp on them.

Meanwhile cook the quinoa according to the bag. I made 10 servings and it still only took 15 minutes to fully cook.

As everything is cooking, I like to cut the veggies in the order they are needed. Starting with dividing out 1 1/2 teaspoons olive oil, the juice of 1/2 a lemon, salt and pepper to taste in each jar.

This is where the chopper works wonders. It really saves a lot of time in the kitchen, especially when meal prepping.

I used the larger squares for the cucumbers and tomatoes, and the smaller squares for the onion.

After the dressing, divide the cucumbers into the jars, then tomatoes, red onions, chickpeas, quinoa (3/4 cup cooked per jar), cilantro, then spinach.

Keep in the fridge for up to 5 days. When you are ready to eat, shake everything into a bowl and mix. Enjoy!

Nutritional Facts

Nutritional Facts are based on 1 serving with 10 servings in this recipe.

410 Calories | 16.6g of Fat | 0mg of Cholesterol | 278mg of Sodium | 65.5g of Carbohydrates | 44.2g of Dietary Fiber | 5.4g of Total Sugars | 60.8g of Protein