Southwest Quinoa Salad

I made this salad for my mom last month and she said, "this is the first time I've ever really liked quinoa." There are in fact many tasty quinoa preparations, but I'm not one to turn down a mom-endorsement.

The recipe is substitution-friendly: you can swap in halved grape tomatoes, cucumber chunks, corn kernels, scallions or even dried fruits.

I'm not sure if it's the salty celery crunch or the high protein content of the salad, but something about it reminds me of tuna fish. Maybe that's an unappealing comparison, but it tastes good to me.

I topped off my ten-ingredient meal with half a red delicious apple, whose deeply-hued skin has more antioxidants than that of any other apple. Cool!

9-Ingredient Southwest Quinoa Salad
Total Kitchen time: 25 minutes. Serves 4.

1 can black beans, rinsed & drained
2/3 cup of dry quinoa
1 large carrot, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
1/3 cup of diced sweet onion
1/2 a red bell pepper, diced
juice from half a lemon
3 Tbls. apple cider vinegar
3 Tbls. extra virgin olive oil

Free Spice Blend
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. chili powder

Rinse quinoa well, drain and repeat. Bring to boil in a saucepan with double the water on medium heat.

Meanwhile, combine all remaining ingredients and spices in a large bowl and stir well.

When quinoa has absorbed most of the water and the middles are translucent (15-20 minutes), remove from heat and fluff with a fork. Toss quinoa with vegetable mixture and serve immediately. Also good chilled!