Sunny Citrus Quinoa Salad

Good Morning!

I recently made a really good summer salad from Kathy Freston's "The Lean" and thought I'd share the recipe and some pictures I took while preparing it.

Sunny Citrus Quinoa Salad

1 cup quinoa, rinsed and drained
2 cups water
1/2 cup orange juice
1 T minced shallot
2 T chopped fresh cilantro, loosely packed
2 T chopped fresh mint, loosely packed
2 T chopped fresh parsley, loosely packed
1T chopped chives
1 tsp freshly grated orange zest
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
2 T olive oil
1/4 cup toasted slivered almonds (I chopped whole almonds)
1/4 cup raisins
1/4 cup golden raisins
1/3 cup chopped dried apricots
1 head butter lettuce (I didn't do)
1 large navel orange, peeled and sectioned (I didn't do)

Make the quinoa: Rinse well in a fine-mesh strainer until the water is clear. Place the quinoa and 2 cups of water in a small saucepan over high heat. Bring to a boil for 2 minutes. Cover and turn off the heat. Leave covered for 20 minutes, or until all water is absorbed.

In the meantime, combine oj, shallot, cilantro, mint, parsley, and chives in a medium bowl.

Add the zest, coriander, cumin, slat and pepper to the oj mix. Whist the oil into mixture.

Toast the almonds, if desired, until light brown.

Fluff the quinoa with a fork and transfer to a large bowl. Toss in the raisins, apricots and dressing.

Place the lettuce and orange sections onto a plate, and top with the salad.

Sprinkle with toasted almonds for garnish.



First, the dressing!

If you don't have a Microplane for grating fresh zest, it's the best * tool * ever.

I didn't have any golden raisins, but it's the sort of recipe that you can jazz up any old way you like. I easily could have replaced them with dried cranberries or dates or anything sweet :)

And this is how pretty it looks when it's all mixed together. Enjoy!