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Chickpea and Squash Sorghum Salad {Vegan, Gluten Free}

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SorghumSalad-1+

When I made this frittata, I had half of a butternut squash leftover so decided to throw together a quick grain salad to have for lunches all week. I had a bag of Bob’s Red Mill Sorghum that I received from the food blog conference I went to last month and wanted to give it try. You could easily substitute any grain you have on hand- farro, bulger, quinoa, wheat berries.

(random note: the following photos are taken with my new iphone 5s camera- big improvement from my last iphone cam but still not quite as nice as my DSLR (which the first photo was taken with))

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Today sorghum remains a staple food in India and Africa, yet it is still relatively unknown in many parts of the world. So what did I think of Sorghum? It was ok, I’ve had other grains I like a little better. It has a very chewy, dense texture so it holds up well even after well dressed which I guess is a good thing (i.e. it’s not going to get mushy or soggy even after days). The negative, it kind of tasted undercooked because of the chewy factor. However the positive is that it’s a gluten free grain and is an excellent source of dietary fiber. Add in chickpeas and squash and you are definitely getting a high fiber meal. I could’ve used my Beano for this dish for sure.

The package has instructions for popping sorghum much like popcorn. I am going to have to try that next time.

Since this was just for me (i.e. my kids wouldn’t touch it), I ended up with a lot of leftovers even though I ate it all week. Next time I will probably halve this portion. I think this would be good with some grilled chicken or shrimp; it would also be nice with some feta or other cheese but I wanted to keep it vegan.

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Before I go, I thought I’d leave you with some pics from our weekend. I took the kids to the local farm for some pumpkin picking, petting zoo fun and other kid activities. We ended the morning with some hot chocolate and a load of lil’ pumpkins. Chasing around an almost 2 year old gets pretty tiring fast especially when you’re 6 months pregnant, so I scored this wheel barrow which made the pumpkin picking much easier. My favorite pic of the day.

PumpkinPatch

The sun shone through shortly after we got there and since I was expecting a little rain, I was pretty excited to see it!

PumpkinPatch2

Then Saturday night, after an exhausting day of single parenting, I curled up on the couch to watch some shows on my Apple TV when I heard the loudest crashing noise from upstairs.

My heart was racing. All I could imagine was the lil’ guys crib falling apart or something dramatic like that. I ran to my bedroom and found that the entire shelf of my closet had fallen down. Pure awesomeness. All I could was laugh….and sometimes that’s exactly what you have to do or else you might just go crazy!

 

closet

Happy Monday friends. You know what I’ll be doing with any spare time I find this week….closet make-over!!

 

Chickpea and Butternut Squash Sorghum Salad {Vegan, Gluten Free}
 
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Ingredients
  • 1 cup uncooked Sorghum (cooked per directions on package)
  • 2 cups diced roasted butternut squash
  • 1 can chickpeas (garbanzo) beans, rinsed and drained
  • ⅓ cup dried cranberries
  • ¼ cup chopped pecans
  • ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
For the Dressing:
  • 3 Tablespoons fresh lime juice
  • 2 Tablespoons fresh orange juice
  • 1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • ¼ heaping teaspoon salt
  • ¼ heaping teaspoon
Instructions
  1. Cook grain according to package. Transfer to a large bowl and let cool a bit. Add butternut squash, dried cranberries, chickpeas, parsley, pecans.
  2. Mix lime and orange juice in a small bowl. Slowly drizzle in olive oil, add minced garlic, salt and pepper and whisk to combine.
  3. Pour dressing over grains. Serve warm or cold.
Notes
For roasted butternut squash: cut squash in half lengthwise, scoop out seeds, spray lightly with olive oil, season with a pinch of salt and pepper and place cut side down on a foil-line baking sheet. Bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes.

 

Question: Have you ever cooked with Sorghum? How was your weekend?

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Comments

    • I know exactly what you mean! That is what I was going for- something super healthy that made me feel like I was taking care of myself. 😉

      Reply

  2. I’ve never tried Sorghum but the way you described it as “chewy” makes me think of wheat berries. Looks delicious regardless!

    Happy closet rebuilding! I had a similar experience except my loud crash was a fish tank exploding. Not fun cleaning up dead fish and gallons of water in the middle of the night. 🙂
    Angela @ Happy Fit Mama recently posted..4 Tips to Survive a Long RunMy Profile

    Reply

    • Aww, thanks. It’s definitely that time of year. I’ve been seeing pumpkin patch pictures all over social media! 😉

      Reply

    • I think it’s pretty similar to wheat berries. Fun experiment though. I need to keep a checklist and see which ones I haven’t tried yet. I get the names mixed up a little. 😉

      Reply

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