Minty Quinoa Salad with Fresh Corn & Radishes

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I made a big batch of quinoa to keep in the house all week. In the time it took me to heat up the corn, I cut up the radishes and herbs and lunch was ready in 5 minutes.

serves 2 to 3

1 cup cooked quinoa
1 ear of corn
2 radishes *
6 mint leaves
Handful of chives, as many as you want
The juice of 1/2 of lemon, or to taste
Olive oil
S and P

Cook the quinoa. Cut the corn off the cob and cook with a very small amount of olive oil. Slice up the radishes into little matchsticks. Cut the chives and chiffonade the mint.

Combine the ingredients and dress with fresh lemon juice. Enjoy!

* CSA 2013 Week #9

Broccoli Salad with Quinoa, Scallions & Roasted Cashews

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More broccoli salad than quinoa salad but yet another way to jazz up quinoa. The possibilities are endless!

1 cup cooked quinoa
1 cup roasted cashews
1 small head broccoli
3 small scallions, green and white parts (or 2 big ones)
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
Salt and pepper, to taste

Cook the quinoa (about 1 cup raw quinoa makes 2 cups cooked, save the rest for another recipe.)

Roast the cashews in a 350 oven for 8 to 10 minutes, checking to make sure they don’t burn.

Slice through the broccoli like you are cutting a head of cabbage, as thinly as you can. Then cut off the longest stems and chop through it to make sure the pieces are small. Steam until bright green, about 1 minute. Drain and run under cold water immediately to stop the cooking.

Thinly slice the scallions and set aside.

Whisk the oil and lemon juice into the bottom of a mixing bowl. Drop in the quinoa, cashews, broccoli and scallions. Mix well. Season with salt and pepper. Enjoy!

Quinoa with Roasted Cauliflower & Toasted Pine Nuts Dressed with Balsamic Roasted Garlic Vinaigrette

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Recently we attended a dinner for Woodstock Farm Sanctuary and the food was outstanding! There was a round of appetizers which included a white bean spread with ramp pesto on toast and a roasted red pepper hummus in endive lettuce cups. The entree was made up of 4 big bowls of creativity that we shared family style: roasted beets and plums, sweet potatoes and mushrooms, asparagus and ramps, and the inspiration for this dish, quinoa salad with white lentils, smoked tofu, roasted garlic and cauliflower.

The memory of the quinoa from the dinner came up when I looked in the refrigerator today and saw the quinoa and lentils leftover from the Green Pea Hummus Plate, the roasted garlic from the farmer’s market and half a head of cauliflower just waiting to be eaten.

2 cups cooked quinoa
1 cup cooked French lentils
1/2 head of roasted cauliflower
1/2 cup toasted pine nuts

Cook the quinoa and lentils. Roast the cauliflower by tossing with a small amount of olive oil and salt and pepper in a 400 oven for about 30 minutes. Toast the pine nuts on the stove top on low heat in a skillet until they are nice and browned.

Balsamic Roasted Garlic Vinaigrette
2 tablespoons roasted garlic, mashed well
3 tablespoons olive oil
1tablespoon really good balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
S and P

Place everything into a small jar and shake until it comes together.

Mix the quinoa, lentils, cauliflower, and pine nuts together. Add the vinaigrette and mix really well. Enjoy!

Red Quinoa with Chickpeas, Toasted Almonds & Cranberries

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There are infinite ways to jazz up quinoa. For this salad, I mixed toasted slivered almonds for crunch and cranberries for sweetness with red quinoa. Regular white quinoa or tricolor would work too!

2 cups cooked red quinoa
1 cup cooked chickpeas (soaked overnight and cooked)
1/2 cup toasted slivered amonds
1/2 cup cranberries
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice (approx 1/2 lemon)
S and P

Cook the quinoa. Make the chickpeas. Toast the almonds in a 350 oven for 10 minutes. Mix everything together and toss with olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Taste and adjust seasoning. Enjoy!