This salad’s got it ALL!

Tons of fresh greens, plant based protein, iron, healthy fats, antioxidants, a touch of sweetness and immune boosting zinc and vitamin C.

Plus it’s the kind of salad that won’t leave you hungry 30 minutes after you eat it.

Yep, you should definitely make it tonight – go ahead, make extra so you’ve got it for lunch tomorrow too. Cook once, eat twice. 

Enjoy.

INGREDIENTS

serves 2

• 2 cups packed kale, cleaned and chopped for salad
• 1/2 cup uncooked quinoa, divided
• 1/2 cup chickpeas (I use canned), rinsed and drained
• 2 small green onions, thinly sliced
• 2 Tbsp dried cranberries
• 1/4 cup of chopped walnuts
• 2 Tbsp pumpkin seeds
• 1/2 avocado, diced

Orange Dressing

• juice from 1 medium size orange
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 3 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 Tbsp maple syrup
• fresh ground sea salt to taste

METHOD

Cook 1/4 cup of quinoa according to package directions. Set aside to cool once it’s done.

While that’s cooking, toast the other 1/4 cup of uncooked quinoa by placing it in a medium size sauté or fry pan on the stove on medium low heat. Move it around lightly with a wire whisk until it begins to toast (about 5 – 10 minutes). It will become lightly crispy and have a nutty aroma. It’s done when it moves freely around the pan without sticking. Be careful not to let it burn which can happen quickly. Once toasted, remove from the pan and place in a bowl to cool.

Whisk all the dressing ingredients together.

To assemble the salad, combine the cooked quinoa, the toasted quinoa and all remaining salad ingredients except the avocado in a medium bowl and toss with half the dressing. Season with salt and pepper to taste and add more dressing if needed.

Serve with the diced avocado on top.

TIPS & NUTRITION

You can make the quinoa and dressing ahead of time so you can put it together quickly the day of.

The toasted quinoa adds a nice crunch, but if you don’t have time, you can leave it out and use only fluffy quinoa.

Because the kale is hearty, you can store the salad in the fridge overnight. You may have to add a bit of dressing the next day as the quinoa will have absorbed it.

The walnuts and kale are high in disease fighting antioxidants, the pumpkin seeds are high in iron and immune supporting zinc, the avocado is high in healthy fats for good energy and the quinoa and chickpeas are rich in protein.