Everybody loves Quinoa!

So we are back in fall mode and school has started. So let’s be honest about something: My time in the kitchen is more limited. In the summer I have more time to aspire to be Goopy (yes, I refer to Gwyneth Paltrow as Goop and yes, I love Gwyneth Paltrow. I’m not ashamed to admit it). Now that we have school, ballet and music class, my days are less about cooking and more about being a chauffeur.

With my limited time, I find myself needing to cook more things that will be enjoyed by my whole family – infant, toddler and parents – and also more one-pot meals that will last us a couple of days.

My Quinoa Salad is easy and can feed the whole family. Charles will eat this pureéd and Olivia loves this salad so much that she regularly asks for it!

What’s great about this salad is that I generally make it on Friday and have it for the whole weekend. I think it tastes better on day 2 and 3! And since I have decided that I need to kickstart a healthy fall (way to much Rosé lunches and bacon breakfasts at the cottage). I like to have this salad around for an easy healthy lunch or dinner.

Soak your Quinoa overnight with Kombu and cook the next day. Remember that the quinoa needs less time to cook the longer it has been soaked.

For the salad:

radishes
cherry tomatoes
red onion
carrots
spring peas
cucumber
green pepper
if corn is in season add a cob worth of cooked corn
if you want spice add in some spicy peppers
arugula

For the dressing:

whole lemon
4 tablespoons olive oil
teaspoon of Dijon mustard
sea salt
pepper

Chop up your tomatoes, red onion, carrots, cucumber and green pepper. I believe the key to a tasty salad is to dice these items up super small.

Put everything into a bowl

Add in as much quinoa as you like to make a full salad

Add in two big handfuls of arugula

Make your dressing and drizzle on salad. Mix well.