Blueberry Mango Quinoa Salad with Lemon Basil Dressing

Isn't it funny how some item suddenly becomes the "it" food? I lived all my life without ever hearing of quinoa but now everyone seems to be talking about and/or serving it up, in one form or another. Even now, I'm not exactly sure how it's classified but that didn't stop me from making a salad tonight using said grain?....pasta?.....???

I got so curious about what quinoa actually is that I googled it and came up with this definition, courtesy of Wikipedia: "Quinoa, a species of goosefoot, is a grain-like crop grown primarily for its edible seeds. It is a pseudocereal rather than a true cereal, or grain, as it is not a member of the grass family."

No wonder I'm confused.

Most salads can seem complicated when you're shopping, simply because there's often so many items on the ingredient list. Then you assemble all the stuff on your kitchen counter and find out how simple it really is to chop up the various components, toss them together, and plate them. Can't get much easier than that.

Brian wouldn't touch something so exotic as this salad, yet he was excited to see the bag of quinoa in the house. The reason is kind of silly but very typical of my youngest son with the zany sense of humor. See if you can follow this - apparently there's some site on the internet where you can go to hear audio pronunciations of words. Only thing is, some of the supposedly correct pronunciations are, in fact, butchered. As a take-off of that particular site, another guy developed one that deliberately mis-pronounces ALL the words in ways that are hysterically funny. Guess what one of the chosen words is? None other than quinoa. The whole time the skillet-full was boiling and simmering on the stove, I got to be tutored on how to completely slaughter saying the name of my goosefoot, pseudocereal non-grass.

When I first tasted the quinoa, as I was fluffing it after the cooking stage, I wasn't impressed. Not one bit. I'd been told it can (and should be) used as a healthier substitute for rice but quickly decided that until they make quinoa that's a whole lot tastier and has a different, fuller texture put me down for another bowl of the the white stuff! The good news is that once the dressing was mixed into the grain, a nice lemony taste came out and I decided I could actually stand to eat the stuff.

I loved the contrast of the lemony bite from the quinoa, mixed with the sweetness of the mango and craisins. My blueberries were, unfortunately, way more tart than I would've liked and I felt that detracted from the overall taste of the salad. With riper, sweeter blueberries I can see where this salad would be an refreshing AND HEALTHY summer dish.

Blueberry Mango Quinoa Salad with Lemon Basil Dressing Recipe

Serves about 2

(courtesy of Sala@VeggieBelly)

For the quinoa:


1/2 cup quinoa

1 cup water

For the fruits and veggies:


½ cup fresh blueberries


½ cup cubed ripe mangoes


½ cup cubed cucumbers

1/2 tablespoon dried cranberries (I used craisins instead)

For the lemon basil dressing
:

1½ tablespoons extra virgin olive oil


2 tablespoons lemon juice


1/4 teaspoon lemon zest


10 Basil leaves, chopped finely

Salt and pepper

Place the quinoa and water in a medium skillet and bring to a boil. Then reduce heat, and simmer covered for about 15 minutes or till the quinoa is cooked. Remove the lid, and fluff the quinoa with a fork. Let it cool to room temperature.

While the quinoa is cooking, combine the fruits in a bowl and refrigerate till you are ready to serve the salad.

Whisk together all the dressing ingredients, except the chopped basil. Refrigerate till you are ready to serve. Chop and add the basil to the dressing just before serving. If you add it earlier, it will go black.

Add half the dressing to the quinoa and mix gently.

Assemble the salad just before serving – toss the quinoa, fruits and cucumbers together. Serve other half of the dressing on the side. Serve immediately.