Quinoa Salad

In the summertime I made a quinoa salad with mango and black bean and this sort of reminded me of that.    About 6 months ago, someone at church made this for potluck and I walked around to the tables to find out who made it so I could get the recipe.  Turns out, it's from the back of the box of Trader Joe's organic red quinoa.  

One of my New Year's resolutions is to feed my family better and to make meals we can all eat (instead of an adult meal and a kid's meal).  I served this quinoa salad with baked turkey taquitos (idea from here if you want a recipe).  The girls liked parts of the quinoa salad not mixed together (a little avocado, some black beans, some corn) but I still only made one dinner for all 4 of us!

The dressing is the bottled cilantro dressing from Trader Joe's but if you don't live near a TJ's, you can try the homemade version after the salad recipe.

Black Bean, Roasted Corn and Avocado Quinoa Salad (6 side dish servings)

1 cup quinoa

2 cups broth (chicken or vegetable)

1 15oz can black beans, drained and rinsed

2 cups roasted corn kernels (I used thawed frozen corn)

1 avocado, cut into 1/2 inch pieces

1 pint grape tomatoes, halved

1/2 c. red onion, finely diced

3/4 cup cilantro salad dressing

1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped

zest of one lime

salt and pepper

Place quinoa and broth in a saucepan and bring to a boil.  Reduce to a simmer, cover and cook until all water is absorbed, about 10 minutes.  Set aside to cool.  

Combine quinoa, black beans, corn, avocado, tomatoes, onion, half of the cilantro and the salad dressing in a bowl.  Stir in lime zest and salt and pepper to taste.  Add more dressing if you want to.  Garnish with the remaining cilantro.

Cilantro Dressing (or marinade)

Combine the following ingredients in a blender, mini chopper, or food processor:

1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
1 garlic clove
Salt and pepper