Quinoa Salad

Purchase quinoa at most major supermarkets or any natural foods store.

1/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil (I used a little less than 1/8 c)
1 tsp Minced Garlic 
1 small Shallot, chopped
1 Jalapeno, seeded, chopped
4 Sun-Dried Tomatoes, chopped
1 tsp Curry Powder
1/2 cup uncooked Quinoa
1 cup Water (maybe more if needed)
1 small Cucumber, peeled, seeded, and diced
2 TB finely Chopped Cilantro
1 TB Fresh Lime Juice
12 Endive Leaves
Sea Salt

Pour the uncooked quinoa in a fine-mesh sieve; rinse and drain. (This helps remove some slight natural bitterness from the grains). In a small saucepan, add quinoa and 1 cup water; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, simmer, and cover until all of the water is absorbed, about 15-20 minutes. (If the water has evaporated before the quinoa is cooked, just add a bit more.) The quinoa will be done when the grains have turned partially white, and the spiral-like germ of the grain is visible. They should maintain a slight crunch when eaten. This will yield about 1 1/2 cups cooked quinoa.

In a small skillet, sauté garlic and shallots in olive oil over medium heat, about 2 minutes. Add the jalapeno and curry powder; heat another 2 minutes. Remove from heat; let cool. Place in a bowl, and add cooked quinoa, tomatoes, cucumber, cilantro, lime juice, and salt. Toss to coat well. Serve in endive leaves or eat on its own.  Makes 4 side or 2 main servings.

All About Quinoa

Quinoa (pronounced keen-wah)

These small, round, and beige-colored seeds soften when cooked, almost resembling caviar in texture. It is a good alternative to rice because of its lightness.  

Quinoa is a high-protein grain that contains all 8 essential amino acids. It's high in fiber, magnesium, and iron; plus it's gluten-free. And suprisingly, quinoa is as delicious as it is nutritious.

Each 1/4 cup of quinoa has 160 calories, 6 grams of protein and 3 grams of fiber.

The tiny seeds, about the size of pellets of couscous, cook in about 20 minutes. The only special handling required with quinoa is to give it a good rinse before cooking; otherwise, the grains can be bitter.

Basic cooking instructions: Soak quinoa in warm water for 5 minutes. Wash, drain and rinse several times. Add 1 cup quinoa to 2 cups boiling water. Return to boil, lower heat and simmer until water is absorbed and serve.

Experiment with this ancient and delicious grain.  Quinoa is becoming more and more popular because of the health benefits.  Check back soon for more recipes using this delicious grain.