Today’s post is sponsored by @RocketSport maker of #RocketSportDryer
Hey there, awesome readers!
If you read this post, you know that I recently discovered how Play Doh plays an important role in our lives. That role goes beyond teaching us how to remove doughy, colourful messes from carpets before mom notices. It even goes beyond algebra.
PS. Did you hear that Mr. My-Math-Teacher-From-Grade-10-Who Still-Haunts-My-Life? Play Doh is more important than ALGEBRA.
And since nothing breeds success like success, I decided to give cooking without an oven another try. So in the spirit of no-baking, I made this:
It’s a quinoa salad.
Here’s what my son had to say:
Me: Do you like it?
Son: Um . . . It doesn’t really taste like anything. So we’ll go with “yes”.
My theory: That’s an acceptable answer because he’s a teenager and we’re talking about a food group that’s 85% vegetables and 100% not pizza.
Here’s the recipe.
PS. The nice thing about salads is that if you don’t follow the measurements exactly, no one really notices.
Quinoa Salad
Ingredients
1 cup quinoa (beige or red or black)
1 cup water
1 can chickpeas, rinsed, drained
1 1/2 chopped unpeeled cucumbers
1 pint cherry or baby heirloom tomatoes, halved
1 cup roughly chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 cup sliced baby spinach leaves
1 1/2 cups crumbled feta cheese
1/4 cup red wine or balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon honey
1/3 cup olive oil
2 teaspoons smoked Spanish paprika
Salt and pepper to taste
Step 1
Bring quinoa and water to a boil in a saucepan. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, simmer until tender, about 10-15 minutes. Chill in the refrigerator to cool.
Step 2
In a large bowl, combine chickpeas, tomatoes, cucumber, parsley, spinach and about half of the feta.
Step 3
Gently toss in the cooled quinoa; do not overmix or stir. You’re not making a martini here.
Step 4
Whisk vinegar, salt, honey and smoked paprika in small bowl. Gradually whisk in oil. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Step 5
Drizzle over the combined salad ingredients; toss gently. Add vinaigrette; avoid overdressing. Top with feta; serve immediately.
This Moxie-Dude.com post is sponsored by Rocket Sport. Follow @RocketDryer on Twitter during his trip to Sochi!
Attagirl! If you get a bottle of good quality pasta salad vinaigrette (no funny business in it), you can make quinoa salad with things like corn, peppers, peas and sliced green onion, and just top it to taste with the vinaigrette. Quinoa is like rice, heavy on starches, so you can load up the veggies guilt-free. Bam.
Thanks for the encouragement, Anne! And for the tips! I’ve never made quinoa before (I don’t even think I pronounce it properly.) But I always feel good when I eat it 🙂
The salad looks tasty – always nice when a teenage boy likes (or at least doesn’t dislike) something!!!
True that! Although he was pretty hungry when I served it 🙂
Mmm, I am obsessed with quinoa!
Me too, Courtney! Well, not in a “cooking it” way but in a “eating it” way. Eating it makes me feel healthy 🙂
Looks great! Quinoa is not my fave, but when combined with things like Feta & tomatoes, I eat it. And I use it in a lot of recipes, because it’s a healthier sub to rice & pasta. (ps. Pronounce KEEN-wah). 😉
Finally – someone who understands how my brain works! Thanks Jenn! I will NEVER mispronounce KEEN-wah again. It is now firmly implanted in my brain. (Although I’m pretty sure I’ve already forgotten how to spell it.) 🙂