Hummus Salad

Pre-heat the oven to 400 F. While it pre-heats, prepare the veggies. Then drain and rinse the chickpeas.

Next, line a large rimmed baking tray with parchment for easy clean-up. Spread the vegetables and chickpeas over the tray in an even layer, and toss with 1 Tablespoon olive oil and salt to coat evenly. Place the tray in the oven to bake for 30-40 minutes on normal oven settings or around 20 minutes for convection ovens. Check periodically. You're looking for a nice browning and a fork-tender consistency.

While the veggies roast, make the lemon parsley sauce. Chop the parsley and dill (if using) very fine, and add it to a small bowl along with the other sauce ingredients (oil, lemon, salt, garlic, and honey). Stir well. Set aside to let the flavors meld.

Now make the hummus (skip this step if using store-bought). Add chickpeas, tahini, water, lemon, garlic, and half the salt to a blender (or food processor). Blend at low to medium speeds until smooth (5-10 minutes depending on the blender). Taste, and add more salt, garlic, or lemon if desired.

When the veggies and chickpeas are finished roasting, remove them from the oven. Then plate the salad. Start by adding a large serving of hummus (about 1/4 cup) to each plate. Use the back of a large spoon to smear the hummus over half of each plate. Sprinkle some of the roasted chickpeas over the hummus.

Next, toss the spinach with 1/3 of the lemon parsley sauce (I like to use my fingers to gently massage the dressing into the leaves for about 30 seconds). Add the spinach to half of each plate. Then top with roasted veggies and chickpeas. Garnish each salad with the remaining lemon parsley sauce. Serve immediately, and enjoy!