Tuna Toast

Cilantro Quinoa Salad



Once again, I've become lax in my blogging but this time I have a good reason- the dreaded Summer Cold. Usually I'm not one to get bothered by being sick, but being sick during the summer really gets under my skin! I should be feeling better in a couple of days but in the meantime, I'd like to share one of my go-to, easy and refreshing summer recipes with you.

This is one of my favorite ways to prepare quinoa. It's easy, healthy and keeps well for about a week in the fridge. The other night I served it up with grilled tilapia and a green salad to make a nice and light summer meal.



Cilantro Quinoa Salad

2 cups quinoa, prepared according to package directions
1 cup cilantro
2 TBS olive oil
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
2 cloves garlic
2 ears of corn- corn cut off cob
1 red bell pepper
1 medium red onion
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
4 green onions, sliced thin
Salt & pepper

Combine cilantro, oil, vinegar and garlic in a food process and whiz until smooth. Pour this immediately over the cooked (and still warm) quinoa and mix well so that it's evenly distributed. Set aside and let cool.

Cut the corn off of the cobs and sauté in a shallow pan until the corn browns slightly. Take the red bell pepper with a pair of tongs and hold over the flame on your stove (or put the pepper in a broiler) and heat each side until it is completely charred. Put the pepper in a bowl and cover with saran wrap. Let sit for 5 minutes. Take the bell pepper out and peel off black skin. Cut into small dice. Dice the red and green onions.

Combine the quinoa with the corn, red pepper, red onion, green onion and black beans. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

For the tilapia, I simply rubbed it with a mixture of olive oil, crushed basil leaves, sea salt and crushed garlic and let it sit for a few hours. After a quick visit to the grill, it was ready!



Now I've got to get back to my Emergen-C's!!



Home cooking, Quinoa