Fancy Chickpea Salad - cooking recipe

Ingredients

1 (15 ounce) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 cup minced celery, with tops
1 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1/8 teaspoon sea salt
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon capers, drained, rinsed and minced
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
3 -4 tablespoons vegan mayonnaise or 3 -4 tablespoons unsweetened vegan yogurt, plus more as needed
Optional
chopped scallion
thinly sliced radish
other herbs (dill, mustard, curry are all possibilities) or spices (dill, mustard, curry are all possibilities)

Preparation

Put the chickpeas/garbanzo beans into a medium mixing bowl and mash them up using a potato masher. They should have some texture. (I used 2 cups of homecooked garbanzos, and found that a sturdy fork worked better).
Add the celery, parsley, sea salt and cayenne and continue mashing to combine.
Stir in the capers and walnuts. (I did not use walnuts, but used scallions and radishes, just to add more crunch).
Stir in the vegan mayonnaise 1 tablespoon at a time until desired consistency is reached.
Chill for 2 to 6 hours. Serve as a sandwich spread or serve on a bed of greens, as a main dish luncheon salad.