Red Quinoa and Sweet Potato Salad with nuts
You know how much I love quinoa by now! I make it in every season with that season’s produce and I think I will never get tired of it. This Red Quinoa Salad might be a great option for your guests, and special events like Thanksgiving or New Year’s Eve dinners with its fancy look and tangly delicious taste.
Equipment
- Bowl
Ingredients
- 1 cup Red quinoa, washed very well, drained and soaked 1 hour in warm water
- 1/2 cup Chopped fresh parsley, mint or coriander leaves
- 1/3 cup Optional: Chopped green fresh onions
- 1 Medium size sweet potato(or carrot or pumpkins), chopped into little cubes
- 2 tbsp Pine nuts,
- 2 tbsp Sunflower seeds
- 1 Avocado, cut into little cubes
- 1 Lime juice
- 1/3 cup Pomegranate molasses or heavy-thick balsamic vinegar
- 1/3 cup Olive oil
- Pink Salt
- 1 1 tbs dried mint
- Optional: Spice mix for sweet potato: 1/4 tsp of each: cumin-coriander-fennel-cardamom seeds freshly grounded into powder
- 1 1 tbs Pomegranate seeds to decorate
Instructions
- Set oven to 180degrees celsius. Place sweet potato cubes in an oven tray, sprinkle olive oil, salt, pepper and spice mix. Bake them until they soft, about 20 minutes. Keep aside
- Wash and drain soaked quinoa and add into a pot, add water to cover plus some more, add salt and bring to boil, simmer low heat until they become soft but not mushy, about 10 minutes. Drain and keep aside
- Toast pine nuts and sunflower seeds in a dry pan, until they are lightly browned
- Prepare the sauce: lime juice, pomegranate molasses or balsamic vinegar, olive oil, salt, dried mint, mix well
- Get a big bowl and add quinoa, chopped herbs, pine nuts and seeds, avocado cubes, sweet potato cubes, and the sauce. Mix them gently using 2 big forks or spoons, fluffing the ingredients to melt into each other without making them too mashed
- Taste and adjust salt, lime or olive oil. It should not be too dry but not too oily!
- Sprinkle pomegranate seeds and decorate with mint leaves
