It’s Super Bowl Sunday and I’m writing this article before going out to find a quiet seat. I mention this because when you think of Super Bowl Sunday and food, what comes to mind is fried chicken wings, big plates of nachos, and lots of other greasy appetizers that are great in moderation but not so great for a healthy nutritional source for the everyday diet.
With that in mind, especially since we live in such a health-conscious area where exercise is a daily routine for the better part of the population, I thought I would try to find a great healthy recipe to try after the fried food binge. Fortunately for me and, now you as I pass this on, I just happened to run into Renae, who has been threatening to give me a recipe since about third grade.
The recipe she sent looks like it might have come from, Food and Wine magazine. It is healthy using several of the super foods, and looks delicious. I have to admit I didn’t have time to try it out, but I can see just looking at it, it looks awesome and can be used as a side dish, as well as a meal in itself. There are a few things I will do slightly different when I make this just because of personal preference and I will mention my changes and why, but I will give you the original recipe below and let you make up your own mind.
As for my changes, I think the only things I would do differently is that I would small dice the other half of the onion, and using butter instead of the oil, sauté that a little first before adding the quinoa to sauté, and I would use either chicken or vegetable stalk instead of salted water to cook it in.
When I wrote about quinoa a while back, I tried cooking it using water as per the directions and also with stock after sautéing onions and I thought that this method had a much better flavor. I also think I would add a little sweet basil and even a small amount of fresh mint to the vinaigrette. Again, this is just me and my taste buds talking, and you can make up your own mind or change things around for your own taste buds. Enjoy.
Quinoa Salad with sweet potatoes and apples
½ C extra virgin olive oil
1½ C quinoa
1½ lbs. sweet potatoes, peeled & cut into ¾-inch dice (may substitute winter squash)
¼ C apple cider vinegar
2 granny smith apples, cut into ½ inch dice
½ C flat leaf parsley, chopped
½ red onion, sliced thin
6 oz. kale or mixed baby greens
In a sauce pan, sauté the quinoa in 1T of the olive oil for about 2 minutes over medium heat stirring often to toast. Add 3 cups of water, season with a little salt, bring to a boil and turn down to a simmer and cover it. Let is simmer for about 16 minutes, remove from the heat and let stand for 10 minutes. Remove the cover, fluff the quinoa and then spread it out on a sheet pan and refrigerate to cool.
Meanwhile, toss the potatoes or squash in 1T of the oil, season with salt and pepper, spread onto a sheet pan and bake it in a pre-heated 400 degree oven, stirring occasionally for about 25 minutes or until golden and a little soft. Let this cool.
Make the vinaigrette dressing, mixing the rest of the olive oil and cider vinegar together seasoning it with salt and pepper. Toss all the ingredients together and serve with the vinaigrette.
