Quinoa Green Goddess Bowl with Crispy Chickpeas and Lemon-Tahini Dressing

Preheat the oven to 400 F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil and set aside.

Start with the chickpeas, friends. Drain and rinse the chickpeas and place them between two paper towels. Gently pat them dry. When you do this, you’ll notice that some of the “skins” on the chickpeas will come loose. That’s a good thing. Just pick off the loose skins and discard them. Place the chickpeas on the prepared baking sheet.

Drizzle chickpeas with the olive oil and sprinkle with the smoked paprika, salt and cayenne. Toss to coat. Transfer the baking sheet to the oven and bake for 30-40 minutes until golden and crispy, stirring once after about 15 minutes. The cooking time will vary a little bit depending on the size of your chickpeas, so make sure to check on them after 30 minutes.

While the chickpeas are roasting, cook the quinoa. Pour the quinoa into a small pot with the water and bring it to a boil. Lower the heat to a simmer, cover and cook for 12-15 minutes until all of the water is absorbed. Remove pot from heat. Let the quinoa rest, still covered, for five minutes. Then fluff it with a fork and turn it out into a larger bowl to cool to room temperature. (I like to pop the bowl in the fridge to help it cool faster, but I’m impatient like that.)

Moving on to the dressing! In a medium bowl, whisk together the tahini and warm water until smooth. Add the lemon juice, garlic, smoked paprika, cayenne and olive oil to the tahini and whisk until well combined. Season with salt and fresh ground pepper to taste.

When the quinoa has cooled, add the cucumber, cherry tomatoes, spinach, avocado and half of the cooked chickpeas to the bowl. Pour the dressing over everything and gently fold all of the ingredients together. Taste and season with a little extra salt if necessary.

Serve in bowls topped with the remaining roasted chickpeas and scallions (if using) with lemon wedges on the side.

Note: If you’re preparing the your Quinoa Green Goddess Bowls in advance, wait to add the avocado and chickpeas until just before serving. You don’t want the avocado to brown or the chickpeas to get soggy.