Mediterranean Quinoa Salad

My last attempt at making a Quinoa Salad turned out fantastic. The salad was so rich in flavor, and every bite left me wanting more and more. Apart from being so amazingly delicious, it turns out that Quinoa is a very, very nutritious grain. An article in Forbes magazine calls it the "Supergrain of the Future" and says it contains protein, iron, lysine, magnesium, Riboflavin, manganese, and even twice as much fiber as any other grain! (I just looked it up to look smarter). Anyway, my Cross Fit obsessed brother is trying to make smarter choices in his diet and asked me to make him Quinoa. He said he loved the last recipe, but wanted something different this time. As always, I did my research on Pinterest and voila! We have a delicious, healthy, super food.

Mediterranean Quinoa Salad
Makes 6 servings

Ingredients:

• 1 cup Quinoa (I used roasted garlic flavored Quinoa, but any kind is fine)

• 2 cups water

• 1 diced tomato

• 1/2 red bell pepper, diced

• 1/2 green bell pepper, diced 

• 3/4 cup diced cucumber with peel

• 1/3 cup chopped olives (You can add more if you love olives. They're personally not my favorite thing in the world.)

For the dressing:

• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

• 2 tbsp agave nectar

• juice and finely minced zest of one lemon

• 2 tbsp chopped fresh oregano or 1 tbsp dried oregano (I just used Italian seasoning)

• 1/2 tsp kosher salt

• 1/2 tsp black pepper

Directions:

• Boil Quinoa in two cups of water for approximately 15 minutes. Let cool completely and place it in the refrigerator.

• In a bowl, mix together the lemon juice, olive oil, agave nectar, salt, pepper, and oregano to create the dressing. Whisk well. 

• Mix in the Quinoa with the dressing. 

• Add the tomatoes, bell peppers, cucumber, and olives and mix well.

• Serve cold and enjoy! 

Recipe adapted from here.

Auntie Lili's Quinoa Salad

Last weekend, at my cousin's baby's baptism, my aunt did a spectacular job with the buffet at the celebration. She had so many different flavors that blended in together perfectly. I loved every bite I took, but one thing that stood out to me the most was this Quinoa Salad. Recently, I had heard that "Quinoa is the grain of the future" or "Quinoa is the healthiest grain on earth". I had never tried it, though, and always had the curiosity to do so. This is the recipe to my aunt's salad that introduced me to this adorable "grain of the future". I succeeded to obtain the same flavor as the first time I tried it (humbly, I think mine was even better). Once I was done, thousands of ideas popped into my mind to make a variation of this salad. I could add mandarin oranges, green apples, or pears instead of grapes. I would also change the pumpkin seeds for sliced almonds. Diced cucumber and even garbanzo beans would go perfectly with this salad. 

Auntie Lili's Quinoa Salad
Ingredients:

• 1 cup white Quinoa
• 2 cups water
• 1 cup lemon juice
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 teaspoons dijon mustard
• 2 tablespoons Agave nectar
• salt
• pepper
• cumin
• 1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
• 3/4 cup grated carrots
• 3/4 cup peeled edamame beans 
• 3/4 cup grapes cut in half
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 1/4 cup pumpkin seeds

Directions: 

• Boil Quinoa in two cups of water for approximately 15 minutes. Let cool completely and place it in the refrigerator.
• In a bowl, mix together the lemon juice, olive oil, dijon mustard, agave nectar, salt, pepper, cumin, and cilantro to create the dressing. 
• Mix in the Quinoa with the dressing. 
• Add the carrots, edamame, grapes, onion, and pumpkin seeds. 
• Serve cold and enjoy!