Quinoa is a complete protein, which means it contains all nine essential amino acids. This recipe is served cold and pairs well with flank steak or grilled chicken.
Northwest Quinoa Salad
Ingredients
- 2 cups of water
- 1 cup of dry quinoa
- .5 lemon
- .25 cup fresh chopped basil
- .25 cup fresh chopped shallots
- .25 cup dried Bing cherries
- .25 cup dry, roasted, unsalted cashews
- 1 tsp. vegetable oil
- .25 tsp. salt
- .25 black pepper
Method
Rinse quinoa. Add water and quinoa to large pot and cook until water is absorbed. Cool properly and set aside.
Chop the basil leaves and halve the cherries.
Chop the nuts. Small dice shallots and mix the basil, cherries and shallots in a bowl.
Zest the lemon in a bowl.
Once cooled, add the quinoa and oil to the bowl and mix all of ingredients. Add salt and pepper.
Serve chilled.
Nutritional Facts:
Cal 260, Fat 8, Sat Fat 1, Sodium 125, Carbs 39, Dietary Fiber 4, Protein 8
7 oz. serving
I was excited to try a new quinoa recipe and I’m happy with the results. I did adjust a couple things in the recipe that I wouldn’t necessarily recommend for others. I had raw almonds on hand, which I substituted for the cashews. I think that ended up taking some of the intended flavor away. I would recommend sticking with the cashews. In addition, I added a little more lemon zest, which I thought was really nice. I was proud of my efforts; however Joe has this recipe tasting a bit more flavorful than mine. I will definitely be making this again.
Source: lifefitness.com/blog. Visit the Life Fitness blog for more health and fitness information.
*Image of “salad“ via Shutterstock
