It’s picnic weather around the country, or so we hear. It’s been raining steadily here in Seattle, and a picnic in this grey weather would just end in someone floating away in the picnic basket. Maybe it’s because we’re both Pacific Northwest Natives, but Melanie and I both are finding this weather more cozy than depressing. (Ask us again in a week, though.) In the meantime, for those with sunshine, here’s a tangy quinoa salad to pack in your basket. And for our fellow Seattleites, we bet this will also taste delightful eaten under an umbrella.
Picnic-Perfect Quinoa Salad
Zucchini on the Grill
Grill The Vegetables Slice four zucchinis into long wedges, and one onion and two red bell peppers into thick slices. Toss in olive oil, salt and pepper and grill over medium heat until all are cooked and soft and have grill marks. Chop up the grilled vegetables in similar sizes and add them to a big bowl. If you’d like some meat, you could add grilled chicken or shrimp, too.
Quinoa Salad Ingredients
Make the Quinoa In a medium size pot, add four cups (1 quart) of stock and two cups of quinoa. Bring to a boil, then cover, turn down to a simmer, and let it cook for about 15 minutes, until all of the stock is absorbed. Let the quinoa cool and then transfer to the large bowl of chopped vegetables.
Also add to the bowl: two cans of drained garbanzo beans; a drained can of artichoke hearts in water (cut into quarters); and a cup of kalamata olives with the pits removed.
Make the Dressing Mix equal parts champagne vinegar and olive oil, a clove of minced garlic, 1 T fresh chopped tarragon and 1 T dijon mustard. Adjust mustard to taste and add salt and pepper to taste as well.
Tangy Dressing
Eat at once, or cover and store in the fridge for up to two days.
Picnic-Perfect Quinoa Salad
Ingredients
- 4 zucchinis, cut into long wedges
- 1 onion, cut into larger chunks for grilling
- 2 red bell pepper, cut into larger chunks for grilling
- olive oil
- salt and pepper
- 2 cups quinoa
- 4 cups (1 quart) broth
- 2 cans garbanzo beans, drained
- 1 14 oz can artichoke hearts in water, drained, hearts cut into quarters
- 1 cup kalamata olives
- 2 1/2 T champagne vinegar
- 2 1/2 T olive oil
- 1 T chopped fresh tarragon
- 1 T dijon mustard
- 1 clove minced garlic
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This looks amazing! Thanks for sharing. I’m glad I found this on here – your blog is great.:)
Oh, my. I love quinoa, and you reignited my passion with this recipe!
Made it tonight, and it’s so good I have to write about it on lifeyum. I posted a pic on Instagram, too, and included #seattlefoodshed, of course
I’ve always gone with the Indian spices, which is great for fall and winter. But this combination of flavors, especially the olives, artichoke hearts, chickpeas, and the dressing — YUM. I had to substitute balsamic vinaigrette because it was what I had, but it gave it a nice sweetness.
Thank you, thank you! A new summer salad to add to the repertoire.
Lisa
Gosh, thank you! So great to hear you loved the salad. We love it too. And posting to instagram is a great idea! What’s your handle on instagram, and we’ll follow you. Also, I read your blog all the time, so it’s fun to see you over here in our world, too!
Your salad sounds good. We have been having your weather here on the east coast. 20 degrees below normal and almost a week of rain…yes, I would need an umbrella to eat this outside.
Time for an indoor picnic, it sounds like! At least out here in Seattle, this weather isn’t unexpected. It’s pretty rainy EVERY June, and then usually clears up sometime after the 4th of July.
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