This weekend was another great one. I spent a lot of time with my sisters…eating pizza, running, doing body pump, eating delicious pasta, s’more brownies, and celebrating my Mom’s birthday! It was a very busy weekend so I didn’t mind the snow day I had on Monday!
We made my Mom a very delicious cake…Vanilla Cake with a layer of Salted Caramel icing and then frosted on the outside with Chocolate icing. So good! Happy Birthday to my Mom. You are loved very much!
Oh yeah…I also had some very fun visitors this weekend…
My best buddies! I wish they could live with me every day!
I have made this recipe a few times already and I absolutely love it. One of the things I love the most about it is the leftovers that I sometimes have for lunch the next day. Lunch is definitely not my favorite meal of the day, but when I have something good to look forward to it isn’t too bad. Breakfast is by far my favorite, followed by dinner, then lunch…and if we are counting dessert as a meal (why wouldn’t we?), that would be my number one. Sometimes I can’t wait to get through dinner just so I can eat dessert. I’m strange. Anyway, this is a very healthy quinoa salad filled with veggies (kale and broccoli) and beans. The lemon basil dressing brightens up the salad and the feta cheese on top is perfectly salty. You can definitely eat this on it’s own, but for dinner I prefer to serve it with some kind of protein (chicken, fish, etc.).
- 1 cup raw quinoa, rinsed well and drained
- 2 cups water
- 2 broccoli heads, chopped
- 2-3 cups lightly packed baby kale
- 1 (15 oz) can or 1¾ cups cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
- ½ cup chopped oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- salt and pepper to taste
- feta cheese
- ⅓ – ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
- ⅓ cup fresh lemon juice
- ¼ cup loosely packed basil leaves
- 1 medium garlic clove, chopped
- 1-2 teaspoons honey/agave
- ¼-1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper
- Preheat your oven to 400* F.
- Place 1 tablespoon of oil in a medium pot over medium heat. Once hot place quinoa in the pot and stir for 3-4 minutes, stirring frequently. Slowly pour in the water and stir occasionally. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce heat to simmer and cover with a tight fitting lid. Simmer for 15-18 minutes until water is absorbed. Keep the quinoa at a constant simmer and keep covered. Remove from the heat and let sit covered for 10 minutes. Fluff with a fork. Cover to keep hot.
- While quinoa cooks toss broccoli with 1 tablespoon of oil and a few pinches of salt and pepper on a large baking sheet. Roast in the oven for 20-25 minutes, stirring once halfway through. Add beans and baby kale to the broccoli pan in the last 5-7 minutes of roasting to warm.
- While the quinoa and broccoli are cooking place all dressing ingredients in your blender or use an immersion blender. Blend until fully combined. Taste and add more olive oil 1 tablespoon at a time if needed. Add more salt and pepper if desired. Shake well before using.
- Combine quinoa, roasted broccoli, beans, kale, sun-dried tomatoes, and salt and pepper in a large bowl. Add desired amount of dressing and toss to coat. Top with cheese.
How was your weekend? Did you do anything fun?
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