Quinoa Salad With Asparagus Dates And Orange Recipes

QUINOA AND ASPARAGUS SALAD

Steps:

• Place the quinoa in a strainer and rinse several times with cold water. Place in a medium saucepan with 1 1/2 cups water and salt to taste. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer 15 minutes, until the grains display a threadlike spiral and the water is absorbed. Remove from the heat, remove the lid and place a dish towel over the pan, then return the lid to the pan and let sit for 10 minutes or longer undisturbed. Transfer to a salad bowl and fluff with forks.
• Steam the asparagus for 3 to 4 minutes, until just tender. Rinse with cold water, pat dry and cut on the diagonal into 1-inch pieces. Add to the quinoa, along with the radishes, pine nuts, chives and tarragon.
• Whisk together the lemon juice, garlic, salt, olive oil, buttermilk and pepper. Shortly before serving, toss with the quinoa and asparagus mixture. Sprinkle the feta over the top and serve. If desired, drizzle a teaspoon of the lemon-scented olive oil over each serving.

RED QUINOA AND CITRUS SALAD

Steps:

• Rinse the quinoa in a strainer several times with cold water. Bring 1 1/4 cups water to boil in a medium saucepot with a tightly fitted lid. Add the quinoa, cover and simmer until the grains display a thread-like spiral and the water is fully absorbed, about 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and let stand, undisturbed, for 5 minutes. Fluff with two forks and transfer to a large glass mixing bowl to cool. Set aside.
• Combine the lime juice, agave nectar, jalapeno, garlic and cumin in a glass mixing bowl, whisking briskly. Drizzle in the oil slowly, continuing to whisk. Once the vinaigrette is smooth and slightly thickened, whisk in the 1/2 cup cilantro and the lime zest. Season with salt.
• Place the oranges, jicama, onions, almonds and remaining 2 tablespoons cilantro in a medium mixing bowl. Pour in about half of the cilantro lime vinaigrette and gently toss. Fold into the quinoa. Drizzle in the remaining vinaigrette, and toss to combine thoroughly. Season with salt.
• Transfer the quinoa salad to a large serving bowl, garnish with almonds and serve immediately.

ASPARAGUS QUINOA SALAD

Steps:

• Put the quinoa in a strainer and rinse it for a minute or two under running water. Put the water and a pinch of salt in a medium saucepan over high heat and bring to a boil. Stir in the quinoa, lower the heat to medium-low, cover, and cook over medium-low heat for 20 minutes, or until soft. (When it's done, the quinoa seeds will have little wisps spiraling off of them-this is the germ separating from the seed.) Drain the quinoa in a strainer.
• While the quinoa is cooking, break off and discard the tough ends of the asparagus and cut the asparagus into 1-inch pieces. Place in a saucepan, add about 1/2 inch of water, and bring to a boil. Cover and cook over medium-low heat for 3 to 4 minutes, or until barely tender. (Alternatively, if you have a microwave, place the asparagus in a microwave-safe bowl. Add a few tablespoons of water, cover with plastic wrap or wax paper, and microwave on high heat for 3 to 4 minutes, or until barely tender.) Drain the asparagus and place it under cold running water for 1 minute to cool it down.
• Cut the kalamata olives into thin slices. Cut the tomato in half, scrape the seeds out of the tomato with a small tool or your finger, and chop into 1/2-inch pieces. Finely grate 1 teaspoon of the lemon peel. Be careful to only grate the yellow part; the white pith underneath is bitter. Squeeze 3 tablespoons of juice from the lemon.
• Place the quinoa in a bowl with the asparagus, kalamata olives, tomato, and lemon zest and stir until combined. Whisk together the lemon juice and olive oil and pour over the quinoa mixture. Stir well and season with salt and pepper. Serve topped with the feta cheese.
• bargain shopper
• Grains such as quinoa, bulgur wheat, and rice are available prepackaged in most grocery stores. But you can save a substantial amount of money by purchasing them from the bulk food section at a natural food store. For that matter, many supermarkets now have bulk food sections, too.

QUINOA SALAD WITH ASPARAGUS

Steps:

• Combine water and quinoa in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to the boil. Reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer for 12-15 minutes or until the liquid is absorbed. Transfer to a large bowl. Set aside to cool.
• Meanwhile, preheat a large chargrill on high. Spray lightly with oil. Cook the asparagus for 2-3 minutes or until tender crisp. Add the asparagus, capsicum, feta, sunflower seed kernels, shallot and parsley to the quinoa.
• Whisk the lemon juice, honey, oil and paprika in a small bowl until well combined. Add the dressing and rocket to the quinoa mixture. Season with pepper and toss to combine.

GRILLED ASPARAGUS AND QUINOA SALAD WITH GOAT CHEESE AND BLACK OLIVE VINAIGRETTE

Steps:

• Heat grill. Brush asparagus with olive oil and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Grill on both sides until just cooked through, about 2 minutes on each side. Remove from grill and cut in half.
• Bring 8 cups of salted water to a boil. Add quinoa and cook until soft. Drain and rinse with cold water and drain again. Place the quinoa in a medium bowl and add red wine vinegar, olive oil, parsley and 1/4 cup of olive vinaigrette. Stir to combine. Place on plate and top with goat cheese, asparagus, whole nicoise olives, sliced tomato and parsley sprigs.
• Black Olive Vinaigrette: Combine vinegar, mustard, chile powder, olives and olive oil in a blender and blend until smooth.

ORANGE-PISTACHIO QUINOA SALAD

Steps:

• In a large saucepan, bring water to a boil. Add quinoa. Reduce heat; simmer, covered, 12-14 minutes or until liquid is absorbed. Remove from heat; fluff with a fork. Cool., In a large bowl, combine romaine, beans, mandarin oranges, cucumber, pistachios, onion and cooled quinoa. In a small bowl, finely grate zest from orange. Cut orange crosswise in half; squeeze juice from orange and add to zest. Whisk in oil, salt and pepper. Drizzle over salad; toss to coat.

HEAVENLY QUINOA WITH ASPARAGUS (GLUTEN-FREE AND VEGAN)

Steps:

• Saute 3 cloves of garlic with onion in olive oil in small deep pan until fragrant.
• Add red bell pepper and red pepper flakes briefly.
• Add quinoa and cover with broth.
• Add lots of paprika and turmeric, to taste, with a big pinch of dried basil and salt.
• Cover and let simmer ~ 25 minutes.
• While quinoa cooks, rinse asparagus and break off the woody ends where they snap naturally.
• In separate frying pan, heat oil and begin to saute asparagus.
• About a minute before asparagus reaches desired doneness, add remaining garlic, finishing with it mostly raw (Flash-heat spinach here).
• Serve asparagus cut on top of quinoa and enjoy!

QUINOA SALAD WITH ASPARAGUS, GOAT CHEESE AND BLACK OLIVES

Steps:

• For the vinaigrette: Combine the vinegar, honey and mustard in a blender and blend until smooth. With the motor running, slowly add the olive oil and blend until emulsified. Add salt and pepper to taste and pulse a few times to incorporate.
• For the quinoa salad: Bring the salted water or vegetable stock to a boil and add the thyme. Stir in the quinoa, bring to a boil, reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer until cooked through, about 30 minutes. Remove from the heat and let sit 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork.
• Preheat the grill. Brush the asparagus with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill on all sides until just cooked through, about 5 minutes. Remove from the grill and cut into 1/2-inch pieces.
• Transfer the quinoa to a large bowl, fold in the asparagus, olives, goat cheese, basil and parsley. Add just enough vinaigrette to moisten the salad; don't make it too wet. Transfer to a platter and drizzle with more of the vinaigrette.

QUINOA SALAD WITH ASPARAGUS, DATES, AND ORANGE

Steps:

• To prepare salad, heat 1 teaspoon oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add white onion to pan; sauté 2 minutes.
• Add quinoa to pan; sauté 5 minutes. Add 2 cups water and 1/2 teaspoon salt to pan; bring to a boil.
• Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 15 minutes. Remove from heat; let stand 15 minutes or until water is absorbed.
• Transfer quinoa mixture to a large bowl. Add orange and next 5 ingredients (through jalapeño); toss gently to combine.
• To prepare dressing, combine juice and next 4 ingredients (through garlic) in a small bowl, stirring with a whisk. Pour dressing over salad; toss gently to coat.
• Sprinkle with chopped mint. Garnish with mint sprigs, if desired. Serve at room temperature.