Asparagus Tomato Goat Cheese Quinoa Salad Food

GRILLED ASPARAGUS AND QUINOA SALAD WITH GOAT CHEESE AND BLACK OLIVE VINAIGRETTE

Steps:

• Heat grill. Brush asparagus with olive oil and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Grill on both sides until just cooked through, about 2 minutes on each side. Remove from grill and cut in half.
• Bring 8 cups of salted water to a boil. Add quinoa and cook until soft. Drain and rinse with cold water and drain again. Place the quinoa in a medium bowl and add red wine vinegar, olive oil, parsley and 1/4 cup of olive vinaigrette. Stir to combine. Place on plate and top with goat cheese, asparagus, whole nicoise olives, sliced tomato and parsley sprigs.
• Black Olive Vinaigrette: Combine vinegar, mustard, chile powder, olives and olive oil in a blender and blend until smooth.

QUINOA SALAD WITH ASPARAGUS, GOAT CHEESE AND BLACK OLIVES

Steps:

• For the vinaigrette: Combine the vinegar, honey and mustard in a blender and blend until smooth. With the motor running, slowly add the olive oil and blend until emulsified. Add salt and pepper to taste and pulse a few times to incorporate.
• For the quinoa salad: Bring the salted water or vegetable stock to a boil and add the thyme. Stir in the quinoa, bring to a boil, reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer until cooked through, about 30 minutes. Remove from the heat and let sit 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork.
• Preheat the grill. Brush the asparagus with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill on all sides until just cooked through, about 5 minutes. Remove from the grill and cut into 1/2-inch pieces.
• Transfer the quinoa to a large bowl, fold in the asparagus, olives, goat cheese, basil and parsley. Add just enough vinaigrette to moisten the salad; don't make it too wet. Transfer to a platter and drizzle with more of the vinaigrette.

WARM QUINOA SALAD WITH SHRIMP AND ASPARAGUS

Steps:

• In a saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat, and sauté the garlic and onion for 3 minutes.
• Add the sun-dried tomatoes, and continue to sauté for 1 more minute.
• Add the vegetable stock, white wine, lemon juice, lemon zest, pepper and salt, and bring it to a boil.
• Stir in the quinoa, and simmer on a low heat with the saucepan covered for about 20 minutes, or until the quinoa is almost tender to the bite.
• Add the shrimp to the saucepan on top of the quinoa and simmer for 3 more minutes.
• Add the asparagus and peas on top of the shrimp and simmer for 3 more minutes.
• Top the dish with the roasted cashew pieces, scallions, and chopped parsley. Season to taste with the salt and pepper.

QUINOA AND ASPARAGUS SALAD

Steps:

• Place the quinoa in a strainer and rinse several times with cold water. Place in a medium saucepan with 1 1/2 cups water and salt to taste. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer 15 minutes, until the grains display a threadlike spiral and the water is absorbed. Remove from the heat, remove the lid and place a dish towel over the pan, then return the lid to the pan and let sit for 10 minutes or longer undisturbed. Transfer to a salad bowl and fluff with forks.
• Steam the asparagus for 3 to 4 minutes, until just tender. Rinse with cold water, pat dry and cut on the diagonal into 1-inch pieces. Add to the quinoa, along with the radishes, pine nuts, chives and tarragon.
• Whisk together the lemon juice, garlic, salt, olive oil, buttermilk and pepper. Shortly before serving, toss with the quinoa and asparagus mixture. Sprinkle the feta over the top and serve. If desired, drizzle a teaspoon of the lemon-scented olive oil over each serving.

ASPARAGUS AND GOAT CHEESE SALAD

Steps:

• Heat 2 tablespoons oil in 12-inch nonstick skillet over high heat until beginning to smoke; add red pepper and cook until lightly browned, about 2 minutes, stirring only once after 1 minute. Add asparagus, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper; cook until asparagus is browned and almost tender, about 2 minutes, stirring only once after 1 minute. Stir in shallot and cook until softened and asparagus is tender-crisp, about 1 minute, stirring occasionally. Transfer to large plate and cool 5 minutes.
• Meanwhile, whisk remaining 4 tablespoons oil, vinegar, garlic, 1/4-teaspoon salt, and 1/8-teaspoon pepper in medium bowl until combined. In large bowl, toss spinach with 2 tablespoons dressing and divide among salad plates. Toss asparagus mixture with remaining dressing and place a portion over spinach; divide goat cheese among salads and serve.

ASPARAGUS QUINOA SALAD

Steps:

• Put the quinoa in a strainer and rinse it for a minute or two under running water. Put the water and a pinch of salt in a medium saucepan over high heat and bring to a boil. Stir in the quinoa, lower the heat to medium-low, cover, and cook over medium-low heat for 20 minutes, or until soft. (When it's done, the quinoa seeds will have little wisps spiraling off of them-this is the germ separating from the seed.) Drain the quinoa in a strainer.
• While the quinoa is cooking, break off and discard the tough ends of the asparagus and cut the asparagus into 1-inch pieces. Place in a saucepan, add about 1/2 inch of water, and bring to a boil. Cover and cook over medium-low heat for 3 to 4 minutes, or until barely tender. (Alternatively, if you have a microwave, place the asparagus in a microwave-safe bowl. Add a few tablespoons of water, cover with plastic wrap or wax paper, and microwave on high heat for 3 to 4 minutes, or until barely tender.) Drain the asparagus and place it under cold running water for 1 minute to cool it down.
• Cut the kalamata olives into thin slices. Cut the tomato in half, scrape the seeds out of the tomato with a small tool or your finger, and chop into 1/2-inch pieces. Finely grate 1 teaspoon of the lemon peel. Be careful to only grate the yellow part; the white pith underneath is bitter. Squeeze 3 tablespoons of juice from the lemon.
• Place the quinoa in a bowl with the asparagus, kalamata olives, tomato, and lemon zest and stir until combined. Whisk together the lemon juice and olive oil and pour over the quinoa mixture. Stir well and season with salt and pepper. Serve topped with the feta cheese.
• bargain shopper
• Grains such as quinoa, bulgur wheat, and rice are available prepackaged in most grocery stores. But you can save a substantial amount of money by purchasing them from the bulk food section at a natural food store. For that matter, many supermarkets now have bulk food sections, too.

QUINOA WITH ASPARAGUS, SWEET POTATO AND GOAT CHEESE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400.
• Peel and cube sweet potato in to small cubes. Also snap ends off asparagus and then chop into larger peices.
• Spray cookie sheet and spread sweet potato in a single layer. Drizzle olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt.
• Roast sweet potato for about 15 minutes until fork tender.
• While sweet potato is roasting. Rinse quinoa and toast in a pan for about 5 minutes.
• Remove quinoa from pan and add 1tbsp oil and add asparagus.
• Season with sea salt and garlic powder and cook until fork tender.
• Remove asparagus and sweet potatoes and set aside.
• Add quinoa and boiling water to pan and let simmer covered for 12-15 minutes.
• Once quinoa is cooked, fluff with a fork and add asparagus, sweet potato and crumbled goat cheese.

QUINOA SALAD WITH SWISS CHARD AND GOAT CHEESE

Steps:

• Remove stems from Swiss chard and chop in 1/2-inch pieces. Chop leaves and set aside.
• Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a 3-quart saucepan on medium. Add onion, garlic and chard stems. Sauté until vegetables are tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in quinoa and mustard. Add broth, stir, and season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, cover and cook on low 15 to 20 minutes, until the liquid is absorbed. Remove from heat, uncover and let sit 20 minutes.
• Meanwhile, heat remaining oil on medium-high in a large skillet. Add mushrooms and sauté, stirring, until lightly browned, about 10 minutes. Add chard leaves and continue cooking until greens have wilted and no more liquid remains in the skillet.
• Fluff quinoa with a fork. Fold mushrooms and leaves into it.
• The cooked quinoa can be set aside at room temperature for several hours and then served, or reheated to warm or hot. Crumble goat cheese and scatter on top just before serving.

ASPARAGUS WITH BALSAMIC TOMATOES AND GOAT CHEESE

Steps:

• 1. Cook asparagus in boiling water 2 minutes or until crisp-tender. Drain.
• 2. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add tomatoes and garlic; cook 5 minutes. Stir in vinegar; cook 3 minutes. Stir in salt.
• 3. Arrange asparagus on a platter; top with tomato mixture. Sprinkle with goat cheese and pepper.