Summer Quinoa Salad
- Summer Sanders
- Jul 11 2014
- 0 comments
Food, friends, fruit, and fun! Beach, sunsets, cocktails, and a soft ocean breeze. Summertime is a great season for good foods that are nutritious and gorgeous. Food is sexy. Food can be an experience; food should be art! The fun you can have with summer produce is limitless. The kitchen is the ultimate playground.
I had a good time playing in my kitchen the other day. I came up with a quinoa salad that is full of protein and vitamins, and also very pleasing to the eye. This is the perfect salad for a brunch or lunch.
Summer Quinoa Salad
Ingredients:
- 4 large carrots, shredded ( I use a food processor when using more than 2 carrots0
- 2 cups of cooked quinoa ( I blend red and white)
- 1/2 cup strawberries, sliced
- 1/4 cup mint, minced
- 1/4 cup pumpkin seeds
- 1/2 large avocado, sliced
For the Dressing
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 teaspoon truffle oil
- 1 cup strawberries
- 1/4 cup water
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/2 lemon
Directions:
- In a large bowl, combine carrots, quinoa, strawberries, mint and pumpkin seeds. Set aside.
- Blend together all dressing ingredients in your high-speed blender. Pour over the carrot and quinoa mixture. Mix together well. Then top with avocado.
- When plating you can add a few sliced strawberries and pumpkin seeds for decoration. I love plating with odd numbers.
Summer Sanders
Summer Sanders has long had a passion for holistic health and fitness. Growing up in Sedona, Arizona, her love of fresh foods, natural healing and fitness was nurtured by this forward thinking community. She trained at the Matthew Kenney Academy and eventually took a job as the head instructor of the online raw food educational program.
Summer now runs a whole food cleansing and health consulting company called Radiantly Raw Lifestyles. She is a certified personal trainer, weight management coach, prenatal exercise coach, and fitness nutrition specialist with National Academy of Sports Medicine. Summer splits her time between San Diego, CA and Sedona, AZ with her husband Mike. She's expecting her first child in October!
