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Thursday, July 11, 2013

Quinoa Lover's Salad

Quinoa in a bowl with vegetables


Doesn't this salad look amazing?  
It contains quinoa, fresh spinach, orange segments, chick peas, walnuts, mint, and roasted beets making it a nutritional powerhouse of antioxidants and vitamins. In addition, quinoa and chick peas are high in protein, making this salad a meal in a bowl. It's dressed in a light orange refreshing citrus dressing.

There is nothing like a hearty salad, especially during the summer when you may not feel like doing extensive cooking. A salad, such as this quinoa salad, could be a perfect lunch, light dinner, or even a side dish to complement any entree.

a close up of a thermometer on a red object

This recipe was shared with me by my daughter-in-law's mother, Jeanette. We were invited  last Saturday to their beautiful home in upstate New York. Knowing that I am a vegetarian, Jeanette surprised me with this delicious salad. After one bite, I knew I would want to share it with you on my blog.

black metal table and chairs set

The homemade fresh roasted beets in the salad are exceptionally delicious. However, if you are in a hurry and want to able to throw this vegan salad together more quickly, I would use cooked beets from a jar or even the roasted beets from the refrigerator section of most supermarkets. 

Jeanette told me she found the recipe on a blog called the Gluten Free Goddass. I adapted her recipe to suit my own taste and made the recipe oil-free, so please check out her blog for the original recipe. 

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups of quinoa washed well and cooked (see below)
2 medium-large uncooked beets, trimmed and quartered and roasted (do not peel and see roasting directions below) 
3 cups of baby spinach leaves
1 cup (drained rinsed) cooked chick peas
Small handful of walnut halves
1 tablespoon of chopped fresh mint
Freshly ground pepper to taste
1 fresh orange, peeled, trimmed, cut into bite sized pieces
Optional: add slivered almonds, pine nuts, avocado slices

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Directions:

Beets: Preheat the oven to 375ºF to roast the beets. Cover a rimmed cookie sheet with parchment paper. Place the whole trimmed beets on the parchment paper. Roasted in the oven for 45 minutes until the center of the beet is soft. When cool to touch, simply rub off skin. Cut beets into bite size pieces.

Quinoa: Cook quinoa according to the directions on the package and set aside. You can also make fluffy quinoa in minutes in the Instant Pot (link to the recipe). 

Wash spinach and set aside

Assemble 
To assemble the salad, mix the warm quinoa, chick peas, walnuts, mint, and spinach leaves in a large bowl. Pour the dressing over the salad and toss. Add the cut up beets and orange pieces without tossing to keep the beets to from excessive bleeding (everything will turn red if you overdo it)

Quinoa Spinach Salad
                       


Try some of these other recipes that I  posted last July::



Basil Spinach Pesto

basil spinach pesto


Cucumber Dill Dressing (vegetarian, not vegan)


salad dressing

Middle Eastern Lemonade- a recipe passed down in the family

homemade  lemonade
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18 comments:

  1. Beautiful salad and I love the addition of beets and chick peas. Your dressing looks yummy too! Thanks for sharing on the BBQ Block Party.

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  2. Yummmmm. I have made a version of this and agree with you about it being so full of flavor. Delicious! I can't eat beets, but I'll bet that's a wonderful addition.

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  3. I love roasted beets... wonderful salad. Thanks so much for sharing it with us on foodie friday.

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  4. Thank you so much for sharing your yummy recipe with Saturday Spotlight. I wish I was a fan of beets, but I bet it would be just as tasty without them!
    Have a great weekend and hope to see you again soon!

    April
    Angels Homestead

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  5. I like all of the ingredients you have in this and the dressing sounds wonderful. Quinoa salads are so satisfying--thanks for sharing with Souper Sundays this week. ;-)

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  6. I always leave your blog with recipes, I want to make, and this is one of them.

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  7. What great looking as well as healthy lunch, new follower!

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  8. That looks SO refreshing!! Visiting from Hearth and Soul Blog Hop.

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  9. This looks amazing! I'm always searching for new ways to make quinoa dishes too. Thanks for sharing! (Visiting from Far Above Rubies link party)

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  10. Wow, this does look gorgeous and sounds so delicious and refreshing - I am so delighted that you shared with Home and Garden Thursday,
    Kathy

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  11. What a lovely salad. Thanks for sharing at Simple Supper Tuesday.

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  12. This looks great! I love a meal-sized salad. Thanks so much for sharing this on Waste Not Want Not Wednesday, I’ve pinned it : )

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  13. Love this salad! We are featuring it this week at Wonderful Food Wednesday - hope you'll stop by and link up some more wonderful food :)

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  14. Hi Judee,

    Thanks for sharing at Healthy2Day Wednesdays. Your post was featured and will be shared on FB, Twitter, and Pinterest!

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  15. Oh gosh, that salad looks amazing. All the ingredients are in season, so I really need to try it. I made a different kale salad this week, but I'm happy to make a new one next week. :) I love pesto in all its forms!

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  16. I know a few vegetarians who would love this salad, I'm going to share this with them.

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  17. Looks really yummy! Cant wait to make.it

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  18. Looks really yummy! Cant wait to make.it

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Your comments are appreciated. I love knowing who is stopping by to read my posts! Have a great day.