Quinoa salad with a creamy dressing - no boring stuff here

"You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view.. until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.." - Atticus Finch from To Kill a Mocking Bird

I was reminded of this quote recently during President Obama's speech as he spoke for the last time before making way to the the new presidency. "To Kill a Mocking bird" was one of the very first English reads I remember from my school days. It was still the days when I had no exposure to racism, had no idea of the outside world. I was barely older than Scout when I read it the first time but Finch and Scout's characters have stayed etched in memory. I have read the book multiple times since then and it never fails to fill me with warmth and hope. For the past few days my fb feeds are inundated with news of the inauguration and the aftermath with the protests all over the country. If you are following the swearing in of the 45th president of the largest democracy in the world, I am sure you are familiar with all the happenings. I am an eternal optimist for myself and my children and I hope that the current divisiveness gets replaced by love and hope very soon.

Today's recipe is a salad, I can guess what you might be thinking when I say the word salad. Back home in India, the word salad always had the negative connotation of being 'ghaas phoose', (roughly translated as a muddle of greens with an implication of not being tasty). Things have evolved greatly and salads have become the mainstay in most cuisines around the world because of the mostly healthy ingredients that go into them. You can choose to make an unhealthy salad if you wish :-) but generally and by definition salads are good for you. A salad is a 'put together' of various different ingredients with different texture, shape, color and taste. Infact "salad bowl" was the popular metaphor used to describe this country of mine and referred to the scores of immigrant population that have come in, stayed and made America their homes, it referred to the uniqueness and individuality each of us brought thus enriching the country as a whole.

If I went back to my childhood self and asked, "which salad I liked most", my answer would be "sautekaayi kosambri" because kosambri was the only dish akin to salad that I knew. Most regional indian meals have a salad - kosambri, kachumbar, raita which is generally raw vegetables served with a mild seasoning as our ancestors recognized the benefits of eating raw & fresh before jumping into any processed, cooked food. These are light on the digestive system and provide you the goodness of the raw vegetables. My salads are usually very plain and simple, if I am putting together an indian version (kosambri), then it has got to have a sprinkle of grated coconut, a seasoning of mustard and asafoetida. If I am fixing a non Indian version, then it is mostly a dash of lemon juice, some fresh cilantro, black pepper and salt. I am not into heavy vinaigrette, mustard or other choice favorites when it comes to salad dressings. Lemon and a bit of olive oil is my preferred dressing to enhance the freshness of the salad.

Today's salad is an exception as the dressing here is really 'dressy'. I found the recipe for this dressing on my pinterest board from gimmedelicious.com. Ah, that is another one of my favorite down time activities, to troll pinterest boards for recipe inspirations and minion jokes (my favorite by the way :-)). While most recipes are forgotten a few minutes after I glance over them, some stay on coaxing me to try until I give in. This dressing didn't need too much coaxing either as it uses my favorite avocado (called butter fruit in India). I skipped garlic, omitted greek yogurt and kept it minimalistic to bring out the most of avocado flavor. I love how this fruit gives you all the buttery richness without the inherent drawbacks of eating real butter. It is good cream without the unnecessary threats of fat and calories. How can you not fall for that offering? So I did try the dressing recipe and was hooked on completely.

Guacamole is a staple at home as we like to roll the roti up with a generous serving of guac for dinner on most days. I like to add chopped avocadoes in salads all the time. The only trouble with it is that they get oxidized and turn black by lunch time making the lunch box somewhat unappealing and unappetizing. Even with the accompanying lemon juice, the pieces lose their color within a couple of hours. When I saw this dressing, I jumped for joy as it has avocado but finds a way to not spoil the looks of the salad. The dressing is what I call 'stripped down guacamole', it has avocado, black pepper, lemon and cilantro but omits onions, tomatoes and jalapeno. To officially make it a dressing, some olive oil is added. The resulting dressing can also be used as a dip or spread.

I prefer packing a lunch from home every day, lunch box has been an inseparable part of my student life and continues to accompany me in adulthood and my working years. I find it healthier, more economical and definitely easier to carry lunch from home. Exceptions are the days where I am meeting someone for lunch during work. Last year there were a few months in the 3rd and 4th quarter of the year where work was upto my nose and beyond and I had no energy to plan or visualize a lunch box. So, I tagged along with a friend who knowing my love for salads promised that she would help me discover a new salad place. It is a local chain called Evergreen that promises fresh salads. The place is almost always packed if you go there during lunch time and still I found them to be very efficient. They have an assembly line (just like Subway if you are familiar) and keep passing the container down the line as you go on adding ingredients. But unlike other salad bars I have been to, at the end of the line they pour the contents from your bowl onto a chopping board, chop them up and convert into a coarse blend before returning them back to the bowl and handing it over to you. This makes the ingredients come together and helps to have the flavors mix better. I picked up my inspiration for blended salads from this place and have been experimenting with them ever since. The avocado dressing helps to blend and bind the contents of this salad.

What do you need to make quinoa salad? 
Serves 3 people
1/2 cup uncooked quinoa
1.5 cups water (or use vegetable broth if you have)
Salad veggies (these are the ones I used today, you can add bell peppers, raw mangoes and any other vegetables you like): 
1 cup chopped cucumbers (I used English cucumbers and chopped them with the skin)
1/2 cup chopped carrots
1 cup cooked black beans/garbanzo beans
1 cup chopped tomatoes
1/2 cup chopped apple (I used a small sized one and peeled and de-seeded it)
for the dressing: 
1 ripe avocado
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
1.5 Tbsp lemon/lime juice
pinch of salt
1/4 Tsp coarsely powdered black pepper
1 Tbsp pure olive oil (use extra virgin if you like the aroma)

How do you make quinoa salad? 

• Take a saucepan, add quinoa in it and roast on low flame for 2 mins or until you start to hear faint popping sounds. Stir a couple of times for even roasting. 
• Add water into the saucepan and bring it to a boil. 
• Reduce the flame to low, cover and cook for 8 mins. Switch off and let it stand for 2 mins before fluffing it up with a fork. 
• Add the cooked quinoa to the salad bowl and let it cool completely before adding the rest of the ingredients. 

• Add the chopped vegetables and the beans into the bowl and mix gently. 
• Take all the dressing ingredients except for the black pepper to a food processor or blender and make a smooth paste. Adjust consistency by adding olive oil to your preference. I like the dressing to be thick and creamy and less oily, so I stuck to the above measurements. 

• Fold in the dressing into the bowl, add crushed pepper and mix gently to bring it all together. Use all or as much of the prepared dressing as you like. Anything remaining can be enjoyed as a dip with crackers, chips etc.

• Taste and adjust lemon, black pepper etc as you like. 
• Cover and refrigerate for an hour to chill before serving. 

Notes: 

• I used canned black beans, so washed them in 2 washes of water and drained all the water. 
• Tomatoes are a must for me in salads not only for their nutrients and splash of color but also the taste and freshness it imparts. Cherry or grape tomatoes halved are best in salads if they are in season, else use a fully ripe but firm, meaty tomato that holds shape when tossed in the salad. 
• Add a handful of pomegranate seeds if you have them handy, adds color as well as crunch. 
• I wanted a wet salad this time and used 1.5 avocadoes in the dressing. You can vary the amount of dressing you add depending on your taste. 

Panzanella - bowlful of fresh, crispy salad: you don't need a resolution in the new year to enjoy this deliciousness

Have I told you grocery shopping gives me pleasure and lifts my spirits? :-), I just don't have the same patience and tolerance for shoes or clothes. I can walk around the aisles filled with fresh produce with images of many delicious dishes swimming in my head and plan an entire week worth of recipes during my weekly grocery pick up. Strange? Aren't we all at some level?

I am a list person and like to call myself well organized. I graduated from hand written notes to oneNote on my laptop synced with the one on my phone (technology advances such as these are really handy) and so whenever I see something need to be replenished or I want an ingredient, it goes on my note and the next time I am in the store, I just have to go by the list. Well, the list was also for another purpose - to avoid reduce impulse buying and eliminate wastage. It works great but I won't call myself 100% successful at staying away from those unplanned purchases :-), it happens once in a while.

During the holiday season, on one of my shopping trips, I found this really big bag of stuffing (croutons+a packet of seasoning included). I used to keep a small container of bread crumbs in my pantry but now I mostly use left over bread at home since I bake often. Croutons is another story, I have never bought except for eating them in salads. It was the season of joy and everyone was purchasing big and seeing those bags of stuffing in every shopping cart around me, made me splurge and bring home one myself. I had big plans of making a casserole, spreading the croutons on top and serving it to dear family. The bag stayed firmly on the counter top, staring directly at me day after day when I came home in the evening and I didn't get around to it even after a couple of weeks of purchase. I changed my mind story and told whoever was listening that I would crumble them in the blender and use it in cutlets:-). I could have served cutlets to an army with that much of crumbled bread. Another week passed and that didn't happen either. Years of familiarity has my family prepared to such things and they very fondly overlook these strange behaviors of mine. BH did make an unkind comment that may be a payasa/porridge would be the next idea. Before we went on our vacation 2 weeks back, I surreptitiously pushed the bag into the pantry with an excuse of cleaning the kitchen, closed the door and left home happily. I confess, I was out of all my wild ideas of using that bag of croutons and was planning to chuck it when I returned home.

Like they say, "Every grain bears its eater's name", these croutons had our names carved on them and the stars just aligned to show me the light :-). Coming back, we had a lay over and as I was walking around the airport to stretch my stiff limbs, I happened to walk into a book/magazine store. There it was on the stands, 'Bread baker's basics' and I was flipping the pages as I always do when I see colorful food pictures, I saw this gorgeous looking salad in a bowl. This was not one of those salads with a few sparsely thrown croutons, instead this one called for equal proportions of croutons and vegetables. Perfect way to use up my bag sitting in the dark pantry. One look and I almost yelled for BH, who was innocently looking at some books on the other side of the store. I showed him the picture and promised I would make that salad as soon as we reached home. I didn't make good of the promise - atleast not the 'make as soon as' part since our flights got delayed and we ended up eating dinner on the way. But I did make it the very next day and the next day and a couple days after. It was sooo... delicious.

I don't have a resolution for the new year but this light yet flavorful salad sounds like a great dinner option if you are looking to eat healthy. Easy to put together with bursts of basil freshness, full of fresh vegetables and the tangy vinegar make this one no less enticing than our Bhel puri, I see those eyes twinkle and ears perk up for all of you snack lovers. Crunchy toasted croutons steal the show. What is more, it can be eaten immediately or after a few hours when the bread pieces are soft and soggy if you like it that way, I do. It looks beautiful too with a few burned pieces of croutons in the colorful medley of vegetables. The dressing is simple and tasty. It is a great party dish if you sign up for salad ever. Original recipe had capers and used red wine vinegar, I made changes to suit my palate.

Updated 1/18: Virtual world is a much bigger place than I ever imagined. Recently I was introduced to a new startup at www.aloha.com and am excited to share a recipe with them that would inspire people to eat healthy. I am not a nutrition expert but eating healthy has always been on the menu in my kitchen. I chose the latest one I had on the blog, don't you agree that this Panzanella makes a great, healthy salad? I have made this with gluten free croutons (made with sorgham flour and flax seeds among others), and it tastes delicious. So I am pleased to share my panzanella recipe via Aloha, make this your next party dish when you meet with friends. Eat light, eat healthy, eat delicious.

What do you need to make Panzanella?
3 cups croutons/2 thick slices of bread of choice
2 Tbsp white vinegar
1/2 Tsp salt
1/2 Tsp freshly ground black pepper
3 Tbsp olive oil - divided use
1 clove of garlic - crushed
1 Tbsp chopped spring onions
5-6 fresh basil leaves - chopped fine
1 carrot - peeled & grated
8-10 grape tomatoes - sliced into half or quarters
1 cup thinly sliced or cubed tender cucumber

How do you make Panzanella? 

• Heat a grill pan (or ordinary griddle) on medium heat.
• Toss croutons in 1 Tbsp olive oil until they are coated and spread them in a single layer on the heated pan. 
• Grill them for a 1 minute on each until until light brown patches start to form. 

• Switch off and let it stand.
• If you are using slices of bread, bush olive oil on both sides and grill them until they are firm and light brown. 
• Once cool, cut them into bite sized cubes.  
• Take vinegar, salt & pepper in a bowl, add chopped spring onions and let it sit for 5 minutes. 

• Remove the soaked spring onions into a large bowl. 
• To the remaining vinegar, add olive oil, crushed garlic and mix well.
• Add all the vegetables into the bowl along with croutons and give a mix. 
• Pour the vinaigrette mixture over and toss it well. 

• Serve immediately. 

Notes: 

• Original recipe used slices of sourdough bread. You can achieve the same effect by adjusting your vinegar or add lemon juice. 
• Bake the bread to crispness in the oven if you do not want to do it on stove top. 
• If you do not have vinegar in the pantry, don't sweat. Just use lemon/lime juice. 

• Any fleshy tomatoes will work, if you want remove the seeds before using. 
• Add a handful of thinly sliced radish for a sharp taste if you like. 
• I have used chopped lettuce and it tastes great too.
• Basil gives that spark of freshness in this salad, don't miss it. If not available, use fresh cilantro and mint in combination. 
• If you want to add proteins, throw in a handful of cooked garbanzo beans.