Everything but the Kitchen Sink Quinoa Salad

This hearty salad uses components from several of this week’s recipes, making for an easy grocery shop and a no-fuss end-of-the-week lunch.

Pack it up: There’s no wrong way to pack this one up. Just put it in a resealable container and you’re good to go.

Swap it out: Don’t have all the ingredients below? Don’t worry! Diced and seeded cucumber, bell pepper, chopped spinach, and red onion would all work beautifully in this dish.

1 cup (250 mL) quinoa
2 cups (500 mL) water
2 tsp (10 mL) extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup (60 mL) pesto from Thursday’s lunch
1/3 cup (80 mL) roughly chopped toasted almonds
1 - 15 oz (425 g) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1/2 cup (125 mL) roughly chopped artichoke hearts
1 roasted red pepper, diced
1 cup (250 mL) halved grape tomatoes

Combine quinoa and water in medium-sized pot. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and let simmer until water is absorbed, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat, fluff with fork, and set aside to cool.

Meanwhile, combine olive oil and pesto and stir to combine.

When quinoa has cooled completely, add pesto to quinoa and gently combine until pesto is evenly distributed. Add remaining ingredients and toss to combine.

Split among 4 bowls and serve, or among 4 airtight containers and refrigerate.

Serves 4.

Each serving contains: 469 calories; 18 g protein; 18 g total fat (2 g sat. fat, 0 g trans fat); 61 g total carbohydrates (7 g sugars, 15 g fibre); 279 mg sodium

source: "Resolve to Brown Bag It", alive #363, January 2013