Quinoa Salad

I have but one word for this: DELICIOUS!




(Please don't let the list of ingredients scare you...it's really not hard to make at all!)

1 C Quinoa
1 1/2 C cold water
1 C snow peas
1 C chopped celery
1 small carrot, sliced thin
1/2 green pepper, sliced thin
1 medium ripe tomato
1 medium cucumber, diced
1/4 C chopped fresh basil
1/2 C sunflower seeds

Dressing:
4 tbs lemon juice
1/4 olive oil
salt to taste
ground pepper to taste
garlic powder to taste

Soak quinoa 15 minutes in cold water. Rinse thoroughly. Place in 2 qt pot with the water and bring to boil. Cover and cook on low for 10-15 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to sit 5 minutes with the lid on. Fluff gently with a fork and set aside to cool.

Steam the carrots and green veggies for 5 minutes.

Chop the tomato, herb, and cucumber.

Blend dressing ingredients in small bowl.

Gently combine veggies, sunflower seed, quinoa, and dressing in a large bowl.

Eat now, or refrigerate and eat later! No re-heating required!



Variations:
All of the following also work well in this salad:
Shell peas
Green Beans
Parsley
Cilantro
Dried cranberries, raisins, apricots
cayenne pepper
minced ginger

Just experiment and have fun!