For my harvest party I needed some protein and tucked in the back of my cupboard was a cup of Quinoa...heaven. And then I thought, why not bake those pumpkin seeds from the pumpkin soup, and the squash seeds from the Pesto Potato Squash Salad, then add them to the quinoa. The rest is history.
Autumn Quinoa Salad
1 C Quinoa (I used Inca Red)
1 1/2 C water (less liquid makes the quinoa chewier)
1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
2 handfuls of roasted pumpkin seeds (see directions below)
1/2 C diced cooked squash
2 T oil
salt & pepper
Roasted Pumpkin Seeds - clean off seeds and rinse thoroughly. Spread out on baking sheet and drizzle lightly with a tiny amount of oil, then sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes, stirring often until they are toasted.
Place quinoa and water in a pot and bring to boil, lower to a simmer and keep covered about 15 minutes until water is gone. Put in a big bowl and toss with chickpeas and olive oil. Add squash and pumpkin seeds, sprinkle with salt and pepper and toss until thoroughly mixed. Refrigerate until serving.
Admittedly, this was my first taste of Quinoa and I was pleasantly surprised:) Very yummy and even Charlotte, my 2 year old, loved it!
ReplyDeleteQuinoa is AMAZING. Kids usually do love it, too for whatever reason. Here's a little history/info on it, there's a reason it's called the mother grain: http://chetday.com/quinoa.html
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