Quinoa Salad with Avocado

Fall and winter are times when we crave heavier foods.  This black quinoa salad with the refreshing avocado added is a great treat to satisfy your cravings.  Check out this article in Forbes for the 7 Benefits of Quinoa.

Ingredients:

For the quinoa:

• 1 cup quinoa
• Scant 1/2 tsp. sea salt
  
• 8 oz. or more greens, such as quinoa, beet greens, or
    chard, cooked, drained and finely chopped
• Grated zest of 1 lemon
• 1 Tbs. fresh lemon juice
• 3 Tbs. olive oil, plus more as needed
• 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
• Sea salt, to taste
• 10 fresh mint leaves, slivered
• A heaping 1 Tbs. finely sliced fresh chives
• 1 avocado, halved, pitted, peeled and sliced crosswise
• 1/2 C cashew cheese see link 
• Pistachio nuts, coarsely chopped, for serving 

Directions:

To prepare the quinoa, rinse the quinoa in cold water. In a saucepan, bring 2 cups water to a boil. Add the quinoa and salt, then cover until most, if not all, of the water has been absorbed and the germ of the seed shows, about 30 minutes, adding more water if needed. There will be a little texture even when the quinoa is fully cooked. Drain off any excess water before using the quinoa. You should have about 2 1/2 cups cooked quinoa.

In a bowl, toss the cooked quinoa with the finely chopped cooked greens, using your fingers to distribute the greens.

To make the vinaigrette, in a small bowl, whisk together the lemon zest, lemon juice, olive oil, cumin and a pinch of salt. Pour it over the quinoa and greens, add the mint and chives and toss to coat. Taste for salt.

Spoon the quinoa mixture onto a platter. Cover the surface with the avocado, cheese and pistachios and serve. Serves 4.

Adapted from Vegetable Literacy, by Deborah Madison (Ten Speed Press, 2013).