Quinoa-Spinach Salad

Sometimes it’s nice to make dinner and lunch at the same time, which is exactly what I did last night. I was in the mood for something lighter and healthier (after a ton of heavy eating in cottage country) so the first thing that came to mind was, of course, quinoa.

However, I am starting to get real sick of quinoa salads where quinoa is used as the base, so I decided to use spinach as the base instead and use quinoa as one of the many lovely toppings.

Everything I put into this salad was quite easy to prepare. First I roasted a couple sweet potatoes.

Because I didn’t have much patience to roast the potatoes for a long time, I chopped them up quite small and roasted them at 475° F for 20 minutes. They turned out quite nicely, aside from a couple burnt pieces, they were crispy and tender.

I prepared two cups of quinoa and spread it across a tray when it was done so it would cool down quickly. As the potatoes were roasting and the quinoa was simmering, I halved cherry tomatoes, and chopped up avocado and herbed goat cheese.

In my vinaigrette was olive oil, balsamic vinegar, mustard, and honey — easy peasy.

I ate this meal for dinner and I plan to eat it for lunch today 🙂

Oh and I also made some for my sisters and boyfriend — they are quite excited for their lunches.

Here is the recipe, enjoy!

Quinoa-Spinach Salad with Honey Mustard Vinaigrette

Makes 5-6 Servings

Ingredients

• 2 sweet potatoes, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 tsp basil leaves
• 1/2 tsp oregano leaves
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp onion powder
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 2 cups of dry quinoa
• 6 cups baby spinach leaves
• 2 avocados, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
• 2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1 cup crumbled goat cheese (I used herbed)

For the vinaigrette:

• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 4 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 1/2 tsp mustard
• 1 1/2 tsp honey

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 475 ° F. Line baking sheet with tin foil.
2. Mix cubed sweet potatoes with olive oil, basil, oregano, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper. Spread across baking sheet and roast about 20-25 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, place 2 cups of quinoa and four cups of water in medium pot. Bring to a boil then down to a simmer until all the water is absorbed.
4. Once quinoa and sweet potatoes have cooled, place spinach leaves, then quinoa, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, avocado, and goat cheese in serving dish.
5. Whisk together ingredients for vinaigrette and drizzle over salad. Serve cold.

Yours edibly,

Elana