Red Quinoa and Garbanzo Bean Salad
I decided to squeeze the last bits of summer out into my "go-to" salad this evening. "Go-to" salad, meaning, my contribution to many potlucks, used to be made with an orzo pasta base before the gluten free days. I modified once I discovered orzo was out and I had a new love affair with quinoa. But not just any quinoa, RED quinoa. Yum. This ancient Incan grain is packed with protein, essential amino acids, iron, fiber, vitamins, minerals and much, much more! Sold yet? It's nutty, fluffy and I like it not only in variations of this salad, but warm with milk, brown sugar, walnuts and strawberries for breakfast! I often think of it as the perfect food, especially for a gluten-free meat-reducer such as myself.
Although I'm posting a summery salad, I envision yam bits and other winter veggie and herb goodness as substitutions here in the near future. Have fun! AND, of course, I'd love to hear of must try quinoa recipes.
1 cup uncooked red quinoa
2 cups water
1-2 cups cooked garbanzo beans
1 cup cherry tomatoes
1-2 ears sweet corn, slice off the raw kernels
1/2 cup crumbled feta
1/2 cup thinly sliced green onions
1/4 cup cilantro
handful finely chopped spinach or kale
1/4 cup roasted sunflower seeds
3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon water
1/2 teaspoon salt
2-3 cloves crushed garlic
The quinoa. Thoroughly rinse the quinoa in warm water and drain. It has a bitter coating that repels birds and insects and can upset the stomach if not washed properly. Add the rinsed quinoa and 2 cups water to a medium pot. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, cover for 15-20 minutes until the grain has absorbed all of the water and the cute little antennas have popped out. Fluff lightly to cool.
The salad. Add all ingredients from the beans through the seeds into a large bowl, finally add in the room temp quinoa, mix gently.
The dressing. Whisk together the lemon juice, olive oil, water, salt and garlic. Pour over the salad and again, mix gently. I like to add about half, mix lightly and see where I'm at. Sometimes, I'm just not in to the complete lemon juice experience. Balsamic vinaigrette is great here as well.
Voila! Make sure you taste test, a lot. ;-)
(4 to 6 servings)
