Delish and Nutrish Recipes: Quinoa Salad with Apple, Chickpeas, Toasted Almonds & Apple Cider Vinaigrette Recipe

Quinoa Salad with Apple, Chickpeas, Toasted Almonds & Apple Cider Vinaigrette Recipe

With an abundance of crisp, ripe apples at the markets and leftover Gorgonzola cheese in the fridge, this salad came together with little effort.

The sweet and salty flavors are punctuated by a light vinaigrette made of apple cider, a little olive oil, apple cider vinegar & a pinch of salt. Toss everything together in a bowl, along with some toasted slivered almonds and chopped green onions. Dinner is served. A meatless one, at that.

The recipe:

The salad:
In a fine-mesh strainer, rinse the quinoa well and drain.

In a medium pot, combine the quinoa and water. Bring to a boil, then cover and turn heat to low. Cook until all the water is absorbed, about 20 minutes. Remove from the heat, fluff the quinoa and transfer to a cookie sheet, spreading the quinoa in a thin layer, to cool.

In a large bowl, mix together the cooled quinoa, almonds, chickpeas, apple, Gorgonzola cheese and green onions.

The vinaigrette:
Whisk together white apple cider, apple cider vinegar, olive oil, agave nectar and salt.

Pour the dressing over the quinoa salad and toss to coat. Serve over a bed of spinach or arugula, if desired.

Ingredients

The salad:
• 1 cup quinoa
• 2 cups water
• 1/2 cup sliced almonds, toasted
• 1 can (14 oz.) chickpeas (Garbanzo beans) - (I prefer Bush's Beans)
• 1 large Gala apple, cored and chopped
• 3 tbsp Gorgzonzola cheese
• 2 green onion, thinly sliced (green & white parts)
The vinaigrette:
• 1/3 cup apple cider or apple juice
• 3 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp agave nectar or honey
• 1/4 tsp kosher salt

Instructions

The salad:
1. In a fine-mesh strainer, rinse quinoa well and drain.
2. In a medium pot, combine quinoa and water. Bring to a boil, then cover and turn heat to low. Cook until all the water is absorbed, about 20 minutes. Remove from the heat, fluff the quinoa and transfer to a cookie sheet, spreading the quinoa in a thin layer, to cool.
3. In a large bowl, mix together cooled quinoa, almonds, chickpeas, apple, Gorgonzola cheese and green onions.
The vinaigrette:
4. Whisk together white apple cider, apple cider vinegar, olive oil, agave nectar and salt.
5. Pour the dressing over the quinoa salad and toss to coat. Serve.