Stars, Stripes, and Quinoa

Quinoa and Tomato Salad

(recipe courtesy of WeWa)

Quinoa is a nutrition powerhouse. I used to not care for it, but now I have lots of recipes that are really tasty. I'm not sure I knew to rinse it before it's cooked, when I used to fix it. I had a hard time deciding whether to use fresh basil or cilantro (had no chives) in this recipe but finally decided on basil. Cilantro would have gone nicely with our pinto beans, roasted cauliflower, and fried polenta, but the basil was calling my name. By the way, it sounds like "keen-wah." I always try to make some extra quinoa, cause some mornings I like to stir it into my Greek yogurt for breakfast and add a little cinnamon spice blend and freshly grated nutmeg.

The stars and stripes part is at the very bottom of this posting.

Ingredients

	1 cup(s) uncooked quinoa
	2 cup(s) grape tomatoes, or cherry tomatoes, red and/or yellow*
	1 Tbsp olive oil
	1 Tbsp white wine vinegar, or more to taste
	1/2 tsp table salt, or more to taste
	1/4 tsp black pepper, or more to taste
	2 Tbsp chives, fresh, minced

Instructions

• Put quinoa in a fine-mesh sieve or fine strainer. Place under cold running water until water runs clear (this eliminates the bitter taste contained in quinoa's coating); drain well. (Or you can buy certain brands of quinoa that are pre-rinsed.)
  
  
• Place rinsed quinoa in a medium saucepan and cover with 2 cups of cold water; bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer until the grains are translucent and the germ has come out of each grain, about 15 minutes. Cover and remove from heat; let sit for 5 minutes.
  
  
• Spoon quinoa into a large bowl and set aside to cool. Meanwhile, finely chop tomatoes, reserving 2 tablespoons of the tomato juice; set tomatoes aside.
  
  
• In a cup, combine tomato juice, oil, vinegar, salt, pepper and chives; stir well.
  
  
• When quinoa is at room temperature, stir in chopped tomatoes; add tomato vinaigrette and toss again. Yields about 1 1/4 cups per serving.

Notes

• *If desired, substitute 2 large tomatoes for the grape tomatoes.
  
  The simple ingredients in this recipe make it a perfect complement to spicy main dishes.
  
  Vary this recipe by using fresh basil, thyme, cilantro or oregano instead of the chives.

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