Caprese Chickpea Salad with Roasted Garlic Basil Dressing

This simple caprese chickpea salad features crisp cucumber, juicy cherry tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, and tender chickpeas tossed in an herby roasted garlic basil dressing. – it’s the easiest summer salad!

Rolling into the week with the EASIEST summer salad recipe that’s gonna help you use up your summer bounty while simultaneously leveling up your lunch game!

We’ve got tender chickpeas, all the fresh garden ingredients, rich fresh mozzarella, and so much herby basil goodness going on. I’m seriously about to crown this salad the queen of summer.

There’s not much this pretty little chickpea salad can’t do and you’ll soon find yourself making it a permanent salad staple for the next few summer months.

In the summertime we like our salads to be as quick, fresh, and easy as possible and this beauty just ticks all the boxes. You’ll only need a handful of basic ingredients and a few minutes to throw everything together.

And then probably only about a minute before you accidentally start eating it straight from the bowl.

This Chickpea Salad features…

• Crisp cucumber and juicy cherry tomatoes
• Fresh mozzarella pearls and tender chickpeas
• A super flavorful roasted garlic basil vinaigrette
• Minutes to make with only a handful of ingredients

Making the Chickpea Salad

(scroll down to the bottom of the post for the full recipe)

Ingredients You Will Need

• Garlic
• Olive oil
• Basil
• White wine vinegar
• Honey
• Cherry tomatoes
• Chickpeas
• Cucumber
• Fresh mozzarella
• Balsamic glaze

What to Serve with Salad

The best part about this salad is how versatile it is! We love serving it with toasted French or Italian bread slices, alongside grilled meats, or throwing it on top of spring mix for a full bulky salad.

This salad is also just as delicious served on its own for a fresh and tasty side dish or lunch salad.

Tips for Perfect Chickpea Salad

1. Wrap garlic in foil for roasting – this helps keep the garlic from browning and helps it steam a little bit during roasting.
2. Use food processor for dressing – this easily breaks down the basil into a smooth vinaigrette. You can also use a blender instead of a food processor.
3. Drain and rinse chickpeas – this keeps that extra liquid out of the salad.
4. Store salad in dressing – this salad actually tastes a little better on day 2 after its had a chance to soak up that flavorful basil dressing.

Recipe Variations

Try these ideas for a different twist on this salad.

• Try a different cheese – try regular mozzarella cut into cubes, shaved Parmesan, asiago, feta, or goat cheese.
• Use regular tomatoes – cut regular tomatoes into 1/2-in cubes in place of the cherry tomatoes.
• Add more veggies – try adding sauteed mushrooms, sweet pepper, avocado, or corn.
• Use a different dressing – if you don’t have time to make the homemade dressing, feel free to use about 1/2 cup balsamic, Italian, Greek, or red wine vinaigrette in its place.

Make Ahead Instructions

Follow these instructions for time-saving make ahead tips.

• Make dressing – blend up the dressing and store in refrigerator up to 4 days.
• Prep vegetables – the veggies may be cut and stored refrigerator up to 2 days.
• Assemble the salad – once the salad is assembled, it stores well in the refrigerator up to 4 days.

This salad is just pure summer in a bowl and its the easiest thing EVER to boot! The roasted garlic basil vinaigrette really is the secret flavor weapon here since it coats all the ingredients and makes everything taste like summer.

Trust me, this is one of those salads you’re going to want to hang onto forever!

Save this recipe using the ‘save to recipe box’ button below. If you make it, please let us know! Leave a comment + star rating below, or take a photo and tag it on Instagram with #wholeandheavenlyoven.

We love summer salads around here! Check out these similar recipes.

• Thai Soba Noodle Salad
• Prosciutto Strawberry Burrata Salad
• Sun-Dried Tomato Mediterranean Zucchini Noodle Salad