Ola my friend! This quinoa salad comes from my dear friend who visited Lebanon late last year and fell in love hard. This was her first introduction to quinoa and she has been replicating at home ever since. She’s amazed at how refreshing and filling it is. She got me so excited about this salad that I had to try it for myself. I made a few tweaks to make it vegan. The resulting flavor and experience was unexpected but pleasantly delicious.

In this recipe post, I’m going to show you exactly how easy is to make this fun salad. Now you will have another great meal option for your “Meatless Mondays” 😉. Are you ready? Let’s go!

Quinoa Salad Original Ingredients

The original ingredients include:

Quinoa
Lettuce
Strawberries
Avocado
Pine Nuts
Honey
Balsamic Vinaigrette

My tweaked ingredients include:

Quinoa
Kale*
Strawberries
Avocado
Pine Nuts
100% Maple Syrup*
Balsamic Vinaigrette
- Balsamic Vinegar
- Minced Garlic
- 100% Maple Syrup
- Mustard
- Liquid Aminos (or Soy Sauce)
- Grapeseed oil
- Pepper and Pink Himalayan Salt

Quinoa Salad Key Ingredients

Quinoa: the star of the show, this powerful whole grain is the base and protein of the salad. Fun fact: quinoa is a complete protein containing all nine essential amino acids.

Pine Nuts: the edible seeds of pine trees. Correct. These underrated seeds are nutritious, yummy, aaand expensive.

Avocado: thick chunks generously scattered throughout anchors this refreshing salad making it filling.

Strawberries: the cherry on top . . . actually the strawberries on top. The perfect topping along with the balsamic vinaigrette delivers a soft punch that leaves you wanting more.

Quinoa Salad Recipe Steps

Step 1

Gather all ingredients and equipment for the salad and the balsamic vinaigrette. Prepare the quinoa and balsamic vinaigrette and set aside.

Note: Ignore the cucumber in the second picture (to the right) that I ended up not using. It would be a great addition to my version of this quinoa salad to make up for the water content that the lettuce would have brought.

Step 2

Chop up the kale, avocado, and strawberries. In a large salad bowl, layer the kale, quinoa, avocado, strawberries, pine nuts, maple syrup, and the balsamic vinaigrette.

Step 3

Toss all ingredients until well combined.

Step 4

Serve room temperature or after refrigerating. Eat slowly and relish each mouthful. Smacznego!

Health Benefits

Here are my favorites for quinoa:

it’s gluten free for those who require a gluten free diet.

an excellent source of fiber, antioxidants, iron, and more

a complete protein containing all nine essential amino acids.

Until Next Time

Well, what do you think? Please drop a comment below or email me. I would love to hear your feedback and/or stories. I’m definitely adding this to my salad arsenal. It’s perfect year around but especially for the hot summers in the South. If you need another refreshing and filling salad idea then check out this Red Kale with Black Beans & Pears salad.

Well, I will take my leave for now. I look forward to our time together again soon. Be inspired to have an appetite to Live and Live well.

Adaeze