I think there are 2 types of people in this world – those who love tuna salad and those who hate it. Because my mom made it all the time when I was growing up, I definitely fall into the first category. But today, I’m hoping to bridge the “hater” gap with these chickpea salad lettuce wraps. If you’re not into fishy things, no worries, these wraps are completely vegan. If you are into fishy things, I think you’ll love them just the same – mashed chickpeas combined with salty, briny flavors (i.e. good Dijon mustard, capers, and cornichons) and finished with crunchy celery and scallions recreate that tuna salad taste to me.
You could definitely make a great sandwich or mock-tuna melt out of this chickpea tuna salad, but since it’s spring, and we’re trying to eat lighter and brighter, I made lettuce wraps.
To balance the bright and briny flavors of the chickpea salad, I made this creamy avocado dill sauce using Almond Breeze Almondmilk to whip it all together.
This chickpea tuna salad is a great lunch, especially if you make the components in advance – the dill sauce should last 2 to 3 days, and the chickpea salad will last a week. These wraps will also make a lovely Easter brunch appetizer for the same make-ahead reasons. Plus – how pretty and springy?
The chickpea salad recipe below will make about 12 lettuce wraps with a little extra avocado dip. If you’re looking to use up the rest of the dip, I suggest you break out a bag of tortilla chips! Or, at the very least, slather it on a veggie sandwich the next day (#notasaddesklunch). It’s so luscious and delicious – I hope you enjoy it as much as we do! And if you’re as crazy about chickpeas as I am, try them in this summer salad, this spring salad, this kale salad, or as a salty, crunchy snack!
