It took me a few goes to create a really delicious quinoa salad. This one is yum and is a healthy, balanced meal, so I'm sharing with you.
Tips:
Add some crunch, with nuts, seeds and radish. Add interest with seasoning & herbs, texture with onion, and some strong flavour such as nasturtium leaves or arugula (rocket). Quinoa is a plain-flavoured food, so a few zesty ingredients interest are needed to make it yum.
Great for lunch the next day.
Dinner the next night: Add some green veg, boiled eggs, tofu or meat. *(pasture-raised & non GMO products)
Delicious served warm or cold.
Sweet potato has a higher GI than other veggies, which is less when boiled. This recipe calls for baked sweet potatoes, however it's good to enjoy them boiled at other times too. It's all about balance.
Nutritional overview: This salad is "nutrient dense" - ok, one of my favourite expressions! Protein in the quinoa, nuts and seeds. Folate, iron, magnesium, Vitamin K and Vitamin C in the leafy greens. Anti-oxidants in the veggies. Fibre in the sweet potato & quinoa. Anti-oxidants & vitamin E in the olive oil, a good healthy fat. Magnesium and omegas in pine nuts & hemp seeds. There's essential micronutrients in herbs and lemon is great for cleansing and balancing properties.
Ingredients: Quinoa, sweet potato, zucchini, capsicum (pepper), Spanish onion, spinach, nasturtium leaves, radish, hemp seeds, pine nuts, sultanas, marinade of honey and avocado oil ( or your own choice; caramelized fig dressing is also yum). Salt & pepper, lemon, extra virgin, cold pressed olive oil and own choice of herbs, dried or fresh. Coriander, tarragon, parsley or mint would all be yum with this. Feta - optional. Tweak it to your own taste.
How to make:
Chop sweet potato into chunks and toss through a marinade of honey and avocado oil (can use olive oil, however avocado is healthier to cook with since it has a lower smoke point).
Place in moderate oven to bake. Chop zucchini, capsicum and Spanish onion, also toss through the marinade. Bake in the oven too.
Cook the quinoa. It is preferable to soak it first to improve digestion, but don't worry if you haven't done this. Cooking in stock will improve flavour.
Place all the roasted veggies and quinoa in a mixing bowl. Add chopped spinach or lettuce. I used nasturtium leaves from the garden too.
Add squeeze of lemon, a generous drizzle of olive oil plus hemp seeds, pine nuts, radish, salt and pepper, sultanas and fresh herbs of choice. Add feta - optional . Enjoy :)
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