Plated + Served: Picnic Quinoa Salad
Here’s a protein-packed salad for your next picnic… especially if you have vegetarians in tow.
This salad not only travels well, it stays fresh in the fridge for a couple of days so you can make it ahead of time. You can also add more veggies to the salad (diced carrots, jalapeños, radishes), depending on what’s in season.
Drew, my little vegetarian, loves this salad… and she always ends up fighting off the carnivores in the family to keep them from devouring it before she gets a chance to dig in!
Picnic Quinoa Salad
prep: 20 minutes
cook: 15 minutes
you’ll need…
1 cup quinoa
2 cups water
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped or pushed through a garlic press
3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar (or any vinegar except balsamic)
5 tablespoons olive oil
½ teaspoon salt
1 15-ounce can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
½ cup chopped bell pepper
½ cup chopped cilantro
2 green onions, chopped
let’s get to it…
Place quinoa and water in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to simmer and cook until the water is absorbed, about 15 minutes. Spread cooked quinoa on a baking sheet and refrigerate for 15 minutes until cool.
Whisk the garlic, vinegar, olive oil and salt together in a large bowl until well blended.
Add the beans, bell pepper, cilantro and green onions to the bowl and gently stir with a rubber spatula, being careful not to break the beans. Add the quinoa to the mixture, continuing to stir gently. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Found you on Mom’s Monday Mingle. This looks delish and I can’t wait to try it 🙂
It is soooo healthy and tastes great!