my perfect lunch, as of late

this meal became a fast favorite for us- it's simple, tasty and makes us feel just a little bit fancy for some reason. as lou put it: "i'd order this in a restaurant". that statement describing a salad and coming from my husband says it all, really.  i also give you the amounts below just as a guideline. when i make this i am chopping and tossing things into the bowl with abandon rather than measuring things out- it's not something i think you can mess up!  hope you enjoy!  

the what

2 cups of cooked quinoa at room temperature or chilled (how to cook quinoa here)

1/4 c. chickpeas, drained and rinsed if canned

1/4 cup red onion, finely chopped 

1/3 cup tomato, chopped

1/4 cup rough chopped almonds (raw)

2 cups of wild arugula

rosemary sourdough toast

1/2 avocado, smashed

3-4 tablespoons of lemon juice

1 tablespoon of EVOO

1/2 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp pepper

the how:

to make the dressing combine lemon juice, olive oil, salt, pepper in a small bowl and mix. taste to make sure you like and modify if it's too sour for your liking (add a little more olive oil if it is!)

in a large mixing bowl combine quinoa, chickpeas, red onion, tomato, almonds, and dressing. toss until everything is coated.  add arugula and mix thoroughly.

i prefer this to sit and chill in the fridge for a bit before serving. and then right before serving i squeeze a little more lemon juice and a little bit of sea salt on the individual bowls. mmmhhhmm. 

avocado toast is possibly the best thing to happen to me since these. all you need is rosemary sourdough toast, smashed avocado, chunky sea salt and black pepper. use all liberally.  

golden beet, heirloom carrot and quinoa salad

one of the things i promised myself i would tackle this year is cooking with diffrent kinds of grains (it's easy for me to fall back on my staple brown rice and ignore all the other delicious and fun grains out there). so yesterday i made this tasty little salad! roasted veggies, quinoa, the perfect dressing: it doesn't get more simple, healthy or delicious. next time we eat this i'll serve it on arugala or mix in some watercress to get our greens in there too. yum, yum, yum.

the what:

1 cup quinoa (multi-variety shown)

4 small/medium yellow beets

1 bunch heirloom carrots

evoo

1/4 c white wine vinegar

2 tablespoons high grade amber maple syrup

2 tablespoons dijon mustard

sea salt

pepper

the how:

rinse and cook 1 cup of quinoa (instructions on how to cook quinoa here)

peel and chop beets, chop carrots and coat all with evoo. sprinkle with sea salt and roast for 20 minutes at three hundred and fifty degrees (when you can easily pierce the beets/carrots with a fork, they're done. adjust time if necessary)

make dressing while the quinoa and veggies are cooking. in a small bowl mix 2 tablespoons olive oil, white wine vinegar, dijon mustard, and maple syrup. add salt and pepper to taste. (this makes more than enough for this salad, reduce recipe if you're not into leftovers...or make this recipe to use up the extra!)

when the veggies and quinoa are done mix in a large bowl and add salad dressing, sea salt and pepper to taste. i prefer this salad when it's had some time to chill for a bit and I definitely like it best served on greens.