Citrus Quinoa Salad with Toasted Almonds Recipe

The most challenging thing about quinoa is learning how to pronounce it, "keen-wah." After that, it's smooth sailing. A super healthy Peruvian "grain," quinoa is as delicious as it is healthy. While quinoa tastes and cooks as if it were a grain, it's actually a seed and has a light, mild flavor and somewhat chewy and creamy texture. It does a wonderful job of absorbing the flavors in dressings or vinaigrettes. Think of it as a healthier version of couscous that you can serve hot, at room temperature or cold.

I used to visit a shop on Grant Avenue in North Beach that had lots of vintage ephemera. The postcard that said "California, land of fruits and nuts" always cracked me up. Fruits and nuts. You have no idea. California is such a magnet for weirdos, and I mean that in a good way. As an agricultural state, we also happen to have lots of actual fruits and nuts. We are the top agriculture state, and the nation’s sole producer (99 percent or more) of a large number of specialty crops, including almonds, artichokes, dates, figs, grapes, raisins, pistachios, clingstone peaches, dried plums, sweet rice, pomegranates and walnuts, according to the California Department of Food and Agriculture.

I used the sunny California combination of almonds and tangerines in this salad, but you could use segments of navel orange, clementines or any other sweet citrus fruit. This salad is good at room temperature. It would make a perfect accompaniment to grilled fish or roast chicken, but it would also be a good potluck dish. You could go even more "California" and serve it piled high in an avocado half. It will keep for a day or so, but it best eaten soon after you make it.

Note:This recipe calls for the juice and zest of half a lemon. Zest the lemon while it's still whole, then cut it in half and juice it.

Citrus Quinoa Salad with Toasted Almonds
Serves 4

1 tangerine, peeled, seeded and cut into chunks (remove as much of the membranes as you can)
1 cup white quinoa, rinsed well
1/2 lemon, preferably organic
2 Tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 medium scallions, thinly sliced
1 Tablespoon flat leaf parsley, minced
1/4 teaspoon sriracha, or more to taste
2 Tablespoons thinly sliced toasted almonds

Rinse the quinoa thoroughly, then toast it in a dry pan over medium heat for a few minutes until it is fragrant.

In a medium saucepan, bring 1 3/4 cups water, the quinoa, and 1/2 tsp. salt to a boil over high heat. Cover, reduce the heat to medium, and simmer until the water is absorbed and the quinoa is translucent and tender, 10 to 15 minutes. Spread out the quinoa on a baking sheet to cool to room temperature.



Finely grate the zest from the lemon and then squeeze the juice into a mixing bowl. Add the olive oil, scallions, parsley and sriracha. Fold in the quinoa and tangerine pieces, season to taste with salt and top with almonds just before serving.

Enjoy!

More fruity quinoa salads

Quinoa Salad with Pears, Baby Spinach & Chickpeas and Maple Vinaigrette from Gluten Free Goddess

Quinoa Salad with Grapes from the Kitchn

Pineapple Quinoa Salad with With Sweet Curry Vinaigrette from Poor Girl Eats Well

Quinoa Salad with Mango & Herb Marinated Shrimp from Well Fed

Quinoa Stuffed Poblano Pepper Recipe

I've been cooking more vegetarian and even vegan recipes lately. One reason is the Meatless Monday effort sponsored by the John Hopkins' Bloomberg School of Health. The idea is to help reduce meat consumption by 15% in order to improve both the health of individuals and the health of the planet. But it also has a lot to do with challenging myself to try new things.

When it comes to cooking, I love a good challenge. Cooking with less meat or none at all inspires me. I do better with fewer ingredients than more ingredients. In a way, it forces you to be creative and think outside the box. Or in this case, the refrigerator. You know the saying, necessity is the mother of invention? It always reminds me of my experiences as a babysitter back when I was a teenager. At some point while babysitting either I, or the kids I was watching would get hungry. It was sometimes a challenge for me to come up with something tasty to eat based on whatever I could find in an unfamiliar kitchen.

Stuffed peppers are an acquired taste. I like them, but my dad doesn't. I know this because when I was growing up we only ate them when he was out of town. If you like the earthy flavor of roasted peppers and quinoa, you will like this dish. It combines a number of vegetables with quinoa and nuts to give you lots of flavors and textures in each bite. The filling is basically a quinoa pilaf, so feel free to swap out the chard for another leafy green or change up the nuts. I used Roland red quinoa but I didn't think that it tasted much different from white quinoa. Originally I thought I would top it with cheese but upon tasting it, I didn't feel like it needed it. I also think you could make this without the sauce if you prefer. You know the drill, make this recipe yours.


Quinoa Stuffed Poblano Peppers
Makes 4 servings as a side dish, or 2 entree serving

2 poblano peppers, cut in half, seeds removed
1 cup water
1/2 cup white or red quinoa
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup mushrooms, chopped
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 tablespoon finely chopped garlic
2 cups swiss chard leaves, shredded
1/4 cup pistachios, chopped
Salt and pepper
1 1/2 cups canned tomatoes, crushed and liquid

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Combine water and quinoa in medium saucepan. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to low. Cover; cook for 15 to 18 minutes or until water is absorbed. Remove from heat.

Heat a large, nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, add olive oil. Saute mushrooms, onion and garlic, stirring frequently for 8 minutes or onion is tender. Stir in chard and let it wilt. Add cooked quinoa and season to taste with salt and pepper. Spoon mixture into peppers. Add the tomatoes and liquid to a baking pan large enough to hold the peppers. Tuck the peppers into the sauce and bake for about 30 minutes.

Enjoy!

Quinoa Salad with Arugula, Asparagus & Avocado Recipe

Ah, Spring! We are enjoying a warm spell right now and the fresh produce reflects the change of seasons with earthy root vegetables giving way to tender bright greens. I am so happy to have sunshine and bright green asparagus to eat! I recently discovered how delicious asparagus is when served raw, in salads. The trick is to shave it thinly with the sharpest vegetable peeler you have, then dress it with oil, lemon and salt so it wilts, just slightly. Asparagus is like the poster child for Spring.



I had eaten quinoa, but never tried cooking it until just recently when I received some samples of it--red, white and black--from Roland Food. Reading about quinoa I discovered while it has the texture of grain, it's actually a fruit. It's also gluten-free. It is very bitter unless thoroughly soaked and rinsed. Fortunately quinoa from Roland Food is already soaked saving me the bother.


Quinoa comes from the Andes, a staple in Peru, Chile and Bolivia where it has been cultivated since at least 3,000 BCE. It is high in protein, calcium and iron and the white variety has a sweet flavor. Most importantly, it has all the nine essential amino acids making it a complete protein. I tried toasting the quinoa, but I like the milder sweeter flavor for this recipe. It has a fluffier almost creamy texture that works well with the strong flavor of the leafy arugula. I really like the addition of dill, but you could easily leave it out or use parsley if you prefer. You could also use a slightly different mix of vegetables.

Note: If you don't plan on serving this salad right away, reserve the arugula and toss it in the salad right before serving.

Quinoa Salad with Arugula, Asparagus and Avocado
makes 2-4 servings

1/2  cup uncooked quinoa, rinsed and drained
1 cup water
5 asparagus spears, shaved thin (use a vegetable peeler)
1 handful fresh baby arugula, roughly chopped
1 green onion, chopped
2  Tablespoons lemon juice, fresh squeezed
2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/2 ripe avocado, peeled, pitted and diced
2 Tablespoons fresh dill, chopped (optional)
Salt and freshly ground pepper

In a medium saucepan combine quinoa and water. Bring to a boil; reduce heat. Simmer, covered, about 12- 15 minutes or until liquid is completely absorbed. Meanwhile In a mixing bowl, make the dressing by whisking together lemon juice and oil. Add avocado, green onion and arugula to the dressing.

Transfer quinoa to a medium bowl and allow to cool. Add quinoa to dressing and vegetable mixture; toss with fresh dill and season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve at room temperature.
Enjoy!

Here are just a few interesting quinoa recipes from fellow bloggers:

Stuffed Cabbage with Quinoa & Roasted Sweet Potatoes from Karina's Kitchen
Quinoa Pudding with Macerated Strawberries & Pistachios from Cannelle & Vanille
Quinoa Salad with Tomato, Feta and Parsley from The Perfect Pantry
Quinoa with Roasted Radishes & Pearl Onions from FatFree Vegan Kitchen
Warm & Nutty Cinnamon Quinoa from 101 Cookbooks
Quinoa Pilaf from Simply Recipes