Starfruit Salad

On weekdays and the necessary wonderfulness of planning ahead

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I used to hate leftovers. As someone who aspires to cook every meal from scratch I would, for years, either stress myself out trying to create time for everything-from-scratch cooking or just shove handfuls of cheese in my mouth for lunch and call it good. 
Lately though I’ve been embracing that thing that many of us already know but that took me a while to catch on to: planning ahead and preparing (revolutionary, I know).

Now I go to the farmers market on Sunday, and whatever I bring home I spend an hour or two making it into meals I can easily eat through the week. I love a good handful of cheese, but this is not only more nutritionally balanced, I can also feel the love past me poured into that meal to nourish the me of that moment, a me who is probably running between things or has maybe ten minutes between calls to eat. 
I always thought meal prepping sounded uninspired and unexciting: like it took the spontaneity and serendipity out of the week. But once I started treating it as an act of self care, something new emerged: suddenly a ton of inspiration for the dishes I wanted to make comes flooding in.

And I know myself well enough to know not to make too much, just maybe 2-3 meals’ worth of each thing, so there’s still variety (and still room for me to cook myself whatever spontaneous meals through we week too, though mostly for dinner).

Here’s one of the meals I’ve been really enjoying this spring: a flavorful chickpea and starfruit salad. I was introduced to the idea of starfruit in my savory dishes in Maneet Chauhan and Jody Eddy's book Chaat, which offers recipes for various Indian street snacks divided by region, including a starfruit and sweet potato chaat from New Dehli that is absolutely stunning and delicious.

Thanks to this recipe, I've started adding starfruit to other savory dishes too, including this salad. One batch lasts me about three lunches, and the whole thing takes literally five minutes to make. I hope you enjoy it as part of your self care, too!

Starfruit and chickpea salad

1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed

2 starfruit, sliced

1 can quartered artichoke hearts

1 shallot, finely diced

1 sprig rosemary, leaves chopped

1/4 c apple cider vinegar

1/2 c extra virgin olive oil

salt and pepper, to taste

-In a bowl, combine the chickpeas, starfruit and artichoke hearts.

-Add the remaining ingredients in a jar with a lid, and shake until combined.

-Pour the vinaigrette over the chickpea mixture and stir until evenly coated.

-Store any leftovers in the fridge.

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