Quinoa Veggie Salad with Roasted Chickpeas

Welcome to my new favourite meal.

This is a meal suitable for lunch or dinner. Actually, if you make this for dinner you can easily pack up the leftovers for a nutritious on-the-go lunch the next day.

This simple, zesty Italian salad dressing is about to become your new favourite dressing. I used fresh thyme, basil, and oregano as my herb base. Believe me, once you start making your own homemade salad dressings you will never want to go back to store bought again. You can make this dressing in a blender, but if you want to make things really easy, shake all the ingredients together in a jar until fully combined. Let it sit for 15 minutes or so to develop it's flavour and then you're ready to add it to the salad.

As the quinoa cooks you can pop the chickpeas into the oven to roast, then work on the dressing and chop up the broccoli and red pepper.

I would definitely call this a 30 minute meal. And after it's done cooking you can serve it up hot or let it chill in the fridge and serve cold.

By the way, you may have noticed the new photography background surface I've been using. Here it is in the works on instagram. I decided to try a little DIY a few weeks ago and make my own background. Let me just say I can't believe it took me so long to do this. I was starting to feel like my current backgrounds were getting old and I desperately wanted something new to shoot on. It was fairly easy to put together and it only cost me around $15-20. Very affordable. I used this tutorial from Ashley from The Edible Perspective to help me do it. Genius!

Now I go back and forth between super clean and white to a rustic + vintage feel with the new wood boards and old baking pans.

Quinoa Veggie Salad with Roasted Chickpeas

by Jennifer Trennum

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Keywords: main dish lunch salad gluten-free grain-free nut-free protein sugar-free vegan option vegetarian vegan bell peppers mustard goats cheese chickpeas

6070763

Ingredients (6 servings)

For the Salad

• 1 cup raw quinoa, rinsed well and drained
• 2 cups water
• 1 large broccoli heads, chopped into florets (about 2 cups)
• 1 large red pepper, diced
• feta or goat cheese, optional

For the Roasted Chickpeas

• 1 (15oz) can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained (or 1.5 cups cooked)
• 1/2 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/2 teaspoon roasted garlic powder

For the Dressing

• 3 Tablespoons white wine vinegar
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 clove garlic, finely minced (or passed through a garlic press)
• 1/2 teaspoon each of fresh basil, oregano, and thyme, chopped
• Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400˚F.

Heat a large sauce pot over medium-high heat, and add the quinoa. Toast, stirring until the grains begin to smell fragrant, about 3-4 minutes. Slowly pour in the water and stir. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes until water is absorbed and quinoa is tender. Do not stir or uncover while cooking. Remove from the heat and let sit covered for 10 minutes.

Roast the chickpeas: While the quinoa cooks, place garbanzo beans in a tea towel (or paper towel) and rub dry. Toss with oil, salt, and garlic powder on a baking sheet. Roast for 20 minutes at 400˚F, then gently roll the chickpeas around in the baking sheet, then roast for another 5-8 minutes, until lightly golden.

Prepare the dressing: Place all dressing ingredients into a blender, and blend until fully combined (or shake ingredients in a mason jar). Add salt and pepper to taste. Set aside.

Combine quinoa, broccoli, red pepper, in a large bowl. Add the dressing and toss to coat. Sprinkle on the roasted chickpeas and top with cheese if desired. Serve warm or chill in the refrigerator.

Notes

Refrigerate leftovers for 3-4 days in a sealed container.

Nutritional Information

Based on 6 Serving's without cheese  Calories: 252 Fat: 11g Saturated Fat: 1.5g Cholesterol: 0mg Carbohydrates: 30g Fiber: 6g Sugar: 1g Protein: 8g Sodium: 211mg

Powered by Recipage

Fresh and simple.

Happy Wednesday!

Some of my other leftover-friendly salad meals from the archives:

• Lemony Quinoa Salad
• Quinoa with Roasted Squash, Dried Cranberries & Pepitas
• Whole Foods Detox Salad
• Millet with Butternut Squash and Kale

Kung Pao Chicken and Vegetables

Do you remember that Szechuan Chicken Stir-Fry recipe I posted not too long ago? Well, I have a follow up recipe to share with you today that's so good, you must promise me you'll make it.

This one takes a little more prep work because of the extra vegetables but it's just as fast if not quicker to cook.

Perfect for when you're in a dinner rut. This will add some tasty zest to your palate.

I recieved such wonderful feedback from you all on my Szechuan Chicken recipe. I had people asking me for more similar recipes! Excellent! I love hearing from you guys so don't hesitate to ask me if there's something you'd like to see on the blog. Keep the great comments coming :)

Now back this dish.

This Kung Pao Chicken packs flavour in spades. I think it's safe to say it could rival any bought from your favourite restaurant. I've made this recipe a few times now and we all loved it. It's like going out for dinner and taking a vacation from typical healthy eating, but really, it's super healthy and clean.

When I set out to make this dish, I made sure to add loads of fresh veggies to the ingredient list. The fresh veggies really help bump-up the vitmain count.

I mean just check out those wild vibrant colours! It is enough to make your mouth water!

This Chinese dish will rival the best kung pao chicken you've ever had from a take-out restaurant. It could become a fast and easy weeknight favorite. Especially when it only takes 20 minutes to cook.

Kung Pao Chicken & Vegetables

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients (serves 4)

• 2 tbsp olive oil or sunflower oil, divided
• 1 large red bell pepper, chopped
• 1 cup kale, stems removed, and chopped roughly 
• 1 cup red Swiss chard (large stems removed), leaves cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 cup broccoli florets
• 1 yellow or green zucchini, sliced 
• 1/2 cup carrots, sliced on an angle
• 1/2 cup snow peas
• 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
• 12 oz boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch cubes
• 1/4 cup roasted unsalted peanuts
• 1 1/2 tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 tsp fresh ginger, peeled and minced (or 1 tsp ground ginger)
• 2 green onions, white and light green parts only, thinly sliced
• 2 tsp rice vinegar
• 2 cups cooked brown jasmine rice, or quinoa

Instructions

Heat oil in a large non stick skillet on medium-high. Add bell pepper, kale, red chard, broccoli, zucchini, carrots and snow peas, and cook, stirring frequently, until the vegetables begin to soften and everything is almost cooked, about 5 minutes. Transfer vegetables to a plate and place in the oven on low to keep warm.

Heat remaining tablespoon of oil on medium-high. Add red pepper flakes, chicken and peanuts and cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently.

In a small bowl, stir together 1/4 cup water, soy sauce, garlic, ginger, onions and rice vinegar. Stir the mixture into chicken and bring to a simmer. Cook for 3-4 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink inside. Return cooked vegetables to the skillet and give everything a good stir. Serve over top of rice, dividing evenly among 4 bowls.