Quinoa Salad

Here's a recipe which was inspired by reading Gluten Free Girl, and by discovering the lunch options at Marks and Spencer. We were in Stockport the other weekend and needed a quick fix for lunch. I had read on another blog that M&S had now started doing gluten free sandwiches, so we went in in search. After asking the manager if they had any, we found out that this branch doesn't currently stock them, but there were other alternatives. So I picked up a pot of their Super Whole Foods Shaker Salad. This was full of quinoa, lentils, beans and other bits and bobs which made you feel healthy just by looking at it. It also came with a seperate lemon and herb dressing. So it was on this that I based my quinoa salad.

200g (Approx) Quinoa
Vegetable stock cube (gluten-free)
1 butternut squash
Handful of frozen peas
2 chopped tomatoes
the juice of half a lemon
Extra virgin olive oil
Fresh basil

1. Rinse the quinoa, and boil in enough vegetable stock until the germ seperates (in accordance with the pack instructions). Drain if needed and reserve some of the stock for the dressing.
2. Chop the butternut squash into small dice and roast in the oven until tender, but not falling apart.
3. Heat through the frozen peas in a little boiling water.
4. Combine the quinoa with the squash, tomatoes and peas, and tear up and add a generous amount of basil.
5. To make the dressing, mix the lemon juice with a little of the reserved stock and enough olive oil to give the balance you like. I like my dressings quite tangy, but taste as you go, you can always add more of each ingredient. Combine the dressing with the salad.

I kept the dressing seperate from the salad itself as it lasted me all week for lunches. This salad is a great way for gluten-free eaters to get a bit of whole grain, and I believe that quinoa is one of those superfoods that we should be eating more of. Or something like that! It is also high in protein so is good for vegetarians and vegans too. Actually, without a conscious effort it turned out that most of my meals last week were actually vegetarian, and that can only be a good thing in my mind. I'll be making this salad again this week, as it definitely adds a bit of variety and freshness to lunchtimes.