Easy Quinoa Salad with Black Beans & Feta: A satisfying vegetarian lunch or side dish

Hey guys! Wow, I feel like it has been forever since I have posted a recipe, or any content for that matter. I love writing in this space and sharing my favorite recipes and sports nutrition information with you guys, but I guess you could say that this season has been a super busy one. In August I traveled almost every weekend (Seattle, Florida, and West Texas) and my schedules seemed packed in-between with unpacking from the last trip, prepping for the next trip and getting all of my work done and wanting to still spend time with friends and family! I know I’m not alone in this feeling. I’m sure some, if not all, of you guys have been there before as well!

Anyway, I find myself with a little time to sit and write and so I want to share this easy recipe that I put together months and months ago! I made it originally as a side dish and then saved the leftovers for lunches. You could use it for both a side dish or entree, but lately I’ve been prepping it and using it for a cold grain salad for lunch. Sometimes I add a hardboiled egg or two on top or some grilled chicken if I have it, but often times I pack it as-is and pair it with a fruit and a Greek yogurt for a boost of protein, calcium and a few more food groups (if you have ever worked with me, you know I’m all about varying those food groups in a meal!).

I came up with this recipe because I wanted an easy vegetarian lunch option. I like making quinoa because it’s high in protein, has lots of fiber and it’s super quick to prepare. However, so many quinoa dishes, in my opinion, end up really bland and blah. So I realized in order to make a dish using quinoa more flavorful, I needed to add the flavor to the actual quinoa, not just the dish itself. That’s where I decided to try incorporating a light dressing with it, something that would not overpower the dish (like a thick creamy sauce) but that would instead enhance and complement the other elements of the dish without being super obvious. If you know me, you know I’m a fan of Dijon mustards and alllllwwwaaaayyys have a few varieties in my fridge. So, I whisked together this easy vinaigrette and, I have to say, the dressing is what MAKES the dish. However you may alter this dish, DO NOT leave out the dressing! This is one of my new favorite vegetarian lunch options and I often find myself quickly throwing it together on a Sunday afternoon to have ready to go for when the week ahead gets busy!

I hope you give this recipe a shot. Definitely try it if you’re a vegetarian, but even if you’re not, make it a side dish at the dinner table or make it a base for your chicken or fish. I’m telling you, it takes no time at all. I think this recipe takes me about 45 minutes to make from prep to plate (or packed in the fridge), but because a lot of this is done in the oven or on the stove, you’re freed up to tackle some other chores around the house. PLUS, you’ll have a good amount to last you a few days or through the week, depending on how many people are sharing it and how you’re serving it.

It’s packed with nutrition and a great source of lasting energy to keep you going during busy days whether you’re an athlete or a busy parent trying to keep up with your busy athlete’s crazy schedule!

Give it a try and let me know what you think!

Happy Fueling!

Taylor

SUMMER QUINOA SALAD WITH BLACK BEANS & FETA

Makes about 5 cups

INGREDIENTS:

• 3 cups sliced raw squash, sliced about 1/4 - inch thick

• 3 cups sliced raw zucchini, sliced about 1/4 - inch thick

• 1 tablespoon olive oil

• 1/8 teaspoon salt + pepper, to taste

• 2 cups cooked quinoa

• One 15 oz can of black beans, drained & rinsed

• 2 tablespoons crumbled feta

• 1/4 cup Dijon vinaigrette (see recipe below)

For Dijon Vinaigrette:

Makes about 1/4 cup of dressing

• 2 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO)

• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

• 1 1/2 tablespoons white balsamic vinegar

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. Toss sliced squash & zucchini in the tablespoon of olive oil and the salt and pepper.

3. Spread out evenly on a parchment or foil-lined baking sheet (sometimes I grease the pan with a little more of the olive oil or with cooking spray before laying out the squash. Just gives it a little more protection from having the squash stick to the pan during roasting).

4. Bake the squash at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes, stirring halfway through to make sure cooked evenly on both sides (I like to make sure both sides get a little browned).

5. While the squash is cooking, cook the quinoa according to package directions. Once the quinoa is done cooking, allow to sit and cool slightly while the veggies finish cooking.

6. Meanwhile, whisk together the ingredients for the Dijon dressing.

7. After everything is cooked, toss the quinoa, veggies, feta and black beans in a large mixing bowl with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon.

8. Drizzle the Dijon dressing over the salad and toss to disperse the dressing evenly throughout the quinoa and veggies.

8. Serve immediately or store in an airtight container for lunches and dinners later in the week!

SERVE IT AGAIN!

One thing I love about this dish is that it can make a hearty vegetarian entree OR you can use it as a base for a delicious piece of fish or grilled chicken OR you can serve it up as a side at dinner with friends and family. You can also add additional roasted veggies to this if there is something you particularly like!

NUTRITION NOTES:

This quinoa salad is hearty and filling. The quinoa offers quality carbohydrates, fiber and it’s a grain with a higher protein content! The beans offer extra protein plus some iron, zinc and more quality carbohydrate. The summer squash adds great color plus additional vitamins and the feta adds a little fat, calcium and protein (although there is just a sprinkle of feta in the recipe so these nutrients are not super significant). Then to top it off, you have healthy monounsaturated fats from the olive oil to fight inflammation, promote satiety and help the body absorb the fat-soluble vitamins in the meal!

Grilled Pesto Garden Salad with Warm Balsamic Shrimp

Here is another summer salad idea for ya! I created this salad recipe years ago (probably 5 years ago?) and it has been a consistent favorite for me and my fam ever since. I love this salad not only for its great flavor but also for its simplicity - just what I’m craving on busy weeknights or summer nights. And, I was just telling my husband that I love grilling out because it seems to make for minimal kitchen cleanup, which is a double bonus to me!

This salad is easy to prep with 3 pretty simple steps:

1. Make the balsamic marinade and marinate the shrimp the morning of or a few hours before you plan to grill them (go ahead and skewer them before putting them in the marinade if you intend to cook them skewered on the grill).

2. Chop up all your veggies and add to a bowl with the olive oil and salt.

3. Make sure all other ingredients are on-hand (I used store-bought jarred pesto that I keep in our fridge, but you could prep that ahead too if you wanted to use homemade pesto).

I prepped our shrimp in the morning before church and then in the afternoon prepped the veggies and started to build the salads as items went and came off of the grill.

This is such a super fresh and delicious dinner option that I hope you try it and I hope it makes just as easy of a dinner for your busy family as it does for mine. Depending on how many you are serving, this salad can also make at least one more filling and energizing meal for lunch the next day. The pesto makes it a flavor-packed way to get your veggies and the shrimp bumps up the protein. We enjoyed ours with fresh bread from Central Market’s bakery. I’m LOVING the new Central Market on NW Highway. Sadly, they didn’t have my favorite bread, the chia & flaxseed bread, at this location. However, they did have a Seedsation bread that both my husband and I like and we made that the easy quality carbohydrate of our meal. I’m always a proponent of including some sort of quality carbohydrate with a meal and it’s really important for young athletes. Whether it’s before events to fuel their muscles, getting them ready for an hour or more of running, kicking, jumping, etc. or it’s after the game, restoring used energy pools in the muscle or being used as any energy source for the body so that protein can rebuild and repair, it’s important! I hope you, your family and your young athletes can enjoy this warm simple summer salad.

Happy Fueling!

Taylor

GRILLED PESTO GARDEN SALAD WITH WARM BALSAMIC SHRIMP

Makes about 2 to 3 salads

INGREDIENTS:

For Salad

• 1 medium yellow summer squash, halved and sliced into about 1/4 inch thick slices

• 1 bunch of asparagus (1 pound, give or take), chopped into about 2-inch long spears

• 1 red bell peppers, cut into large pieces or squares (I like having the bigger grilled pieces to bite into)

• 1 yellow bell pepper, cut into large pieces or squares (like the red peppers)

• 4 cups mixed greens (or more if you want bigger salads)

• 2 tablespoons of pesto (plus more for serving, if desired)

• About 1/2 pound of large shrimp, peeled and deveined (this may get you around 5 to 6 shrimp per person, depending on the shrimp. If you want more then, certainly use more. I bought a pound of shrimp and grilled so that I would have leftovers for a lunch or two during the week)

• OPTIONAL - 1 loaf whole grain rustic bread (we love the Seedsation bread and Chia & Flaxseed bread fro Central Market)

For Vinaigrette for the Shrimp:

• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

• 2 teaspoons honey

• 1/4 teaspoon of salt

• Pepper, to taste

DIRECTIONS:

1. The morning of or a few hours before cooking, whisk together all of the Vinaigrette ingredients.

2. Pour vinaigrette into a large ziplock bag along with the shrimp.

3. Seal tightly and store in the refrigerator until ready to cook.

4. When ready to cook, heat grill or grill pan to medium heat.

5. Add your pesto to the bottom of a large mixing bowl (you will be adding the grilled veggies to this later and tossing together).

6. Toss the chopped vegetables with 2 tbsp. olive oil, 1/4 tsp. salt and a dash of pepper.

7. Grill the vegetables on the grill until they start to soften and begin to get grill marks, about 10 to 20 minutes).

8. Place the grilled veggies in the bowl with the pesto and gently toss together. Tent with foil or place in a warm oven to keep warm.

9. Remove shrimp from the bowl or bag with marinade and grill about 2 minutes per side.

10. Assemble salad by adding 1 cup of mixed greens to base of each plate.

11. Top the spinach leaves with the warm pesto roasted vegetables.

12. Sprinkle each salad with about 1 tablespoon of feta cheese.

13. Top with your balsamic grilled shrimp

14. Serve with warm crusty rustic bread, if desired, and enjoy!

Make It Again!

With the leftovers from this recipe, I like taking the pesto grilled veggies and the leftover balsamic shrimp and adding it to cooked quinoa and then adding a little feta sprinkled on top. You can give it a quick reheat in the microwave or enjoy it as a cold salad as is!

My Go-To Hearty Kale Salad

If you have been following along lately, you know that I have been throwing together a lot of salads. They are just so quick and easy and versatile. You can throw anything in them and run out the door. And, I’m not one that can always go out to lunch, so it’s great to have this ready to go at work. I always include one or two things with it, like an apple or a yogurt, or a granola bar or crackers and hummus, but this salad really helps satisfy me and keep me energized for the rest of my day.

To me it’s hard to prep salads ahead of time because so many of the lettuces like spinach and mixed greens can get wilty (is that a word? I’m goin’ with it) really quickly. The great thing about kale is that I can go ahead and wash it, chop it and throw it in a bowl, or put together and dress my salad completely and it will still be good in a couple of days! For all of these reasons, I have been loving this kale salad. This is the variety I typically make but I put a few other varieties at the end of this post. You can either prep the greens and toppings and store separately, allowing for more variety during the week or go ahead and throw it all together in one large bowl! When I use this creamy tahini caesar (which I tell you in my post is by Cookie & Kate) I usually store it separately. If using a balsamic or some sort of vinaigrette, I’ll often go ahead and massage the dressing into the kale. It helps break it down a little bit so it is not so tough when it’s time to enjoy it.

Today I’m sharing this tasty, fueling and satisfying go-to salad with you. I hope you enjoy!

Happy Fueling!

Taylor

My Go-To Kale Salad with Creamy Tahini Caesar Dressing

Makes about 4 entree-salads (if using about 2 1/2 cups per salad)

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 Balsamic Roasted Portobello mushrooms (recipe and 3 ingredients in this post)

• 1 batch of Tahini Caesar Dressing (recipe & ingredients in this post, original recipe by Cookie & Kate)

• 7 cups chopped Lacinato kale (about 1 bunch)

• 5 cups lightly packed Romaine lettuce

• One 15-oz can chickpeas, rinsed and drained

• 1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved

• 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

• 1/4 cup pumpkin seeds (optional but I LOVE adding these!)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven and roast mushrooms according to directions linked above.

2. While the mushrooms roast, whisk together the ingredients for the Tahini Caesar dressing in a small bowl (recipe linked above). Keep in the bowl or pour into a small mason jar (or other airtight container) to store and use throughout the week.

3. Add the pumpkin seeds to a small skillet and heat on medium heat. Cook about 5 minutes until the seeds begin to “pop”, brown and you start to smell their rich nuttiness. Yum! You don’t need to add any oil to the skillet because seeds naturally contain oil that will start to come out as the seeds begin to heat up.

4. Add the kale, romaine, chickpeas, tomatoes, parmesan cheese, roasted chopped portobello mushrooms and pumpkin seeds to a large mixing bowl and toss together with tongs or salad spoons to incorporate all ingredients.

5. Store the salad and dressing in the refrigerator separately to use throughout the week. Or, if serving for a group immediately, add dressing to the salad and toss until all well-combined. I would start with about 1/4 cup of dressing and toss all together. Add more dressing as needed or let your guests add it separately at the table!

6. Enjoy!

Nutrition Notes:

Kale: Did you know kale is a non-dairy source of calcium?! I try to incorporate it into any of my athletes meals that don’t eat dairy but will eat kale (that’s not often, ha, but I’ll take it when I can!) This leafy green also contains, vitamin K, vitamin A, vitamin C, iron, magnesium, potassium, copper and manganese.

Tomatoes: vitamin C, lycopene, fluid, fiber, vitamin A, vitamin K, potassium

Chickpeas: protein, thiamin, niacin, riboflavin, folate, copper, manganese

Pumpkin Seeds: protein, fiber, monounsaturated fats & some omega 3’s, magnesium, iron, potassium, zinc

Tahini: protein, thiamin, phosphorus, monounsaturated fats and some omega 3’s, copper, manganese