This simple summer salad features crisp and vibrant seasonal vegetables, protein-packed quinoa and a delicious lemon vinaigrette dressing made with Italian olive oil. Plus, there’s a fab giveaway to win 3 x 250 ml tins of extra virgin Italian olive oil from Pomora.
Our daughter (aged 11 3/4) has all but gone vegetarian (or pescetarian as she does love her freshly caught and fried mackerel). We’ve known for years that this was the path she was going to go down as she’s never particularly cared for the taste of meat.
This week also sees the start of weekly deliveries of our organic veg box – it’s peak harvest season here in Shetland and the gardens and polytunnels are heaving with fresh produce. Last weekend we volunteered for a few hours, shifting muck and tearing down old pallet fences from around the fruit bushes.
It is a combination of these two facts which has led to the creation of this summer quinoa salad recipe. I want to start teaching our daughter about alternative protein sources (she’s very active with fencing and climbing being two of her favourite sports), and the importance of a balanced, nutritious diet. Also, there’s a fridge full of freshly picked vegetables and I wanted to make something that showcased their fresh, vibrant flavour.
Also, here’s a blog post I wrote with ten reasons why you should subscribe to a veg box scheme.
INGREDIENTS FOR THIS VEGAN SUMMER QUINOA SALAD RECIPE
- quinoa – look for this in your local wholefoods shop (why use rainbow quinoa for more colour and flavour?).
- a selection of seasonal vegetables including a leafy green and something with some crunch (carrots, kohlrabi & salad beetroot)
- good quality olive oil – I use extra virgin olive oil from Pomora
- Dijon mustard – for a little kick
- lemon – juice and zest
- salt and pepper, to taste
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HOW TO MAKE THIS VEGAN SUMMER QUINOA SALAD RECIPE
Step 1: cook your quinoa in twice as much boiling salted water until the little tails appear.
Step 2: drain and rinse the cooked quinoa under cold water and set aside.
Step 3: pop all the lemon vinaigrette ingredients into a small jar, put the lid on and shake for a few seconds.
Step 4: chop all your vegetables finely and toss gently with the cold, cooked quinoa.
Step 5: drizzle over the lemon vinaigrette and gently toss again.
Step 6: spoon into a serving bowl and serve!
I’ve used a combination of rainbow chard, carrot, red pepper, salad beetroot (I think it looks like little pink and white pieces of candy when it’s cut into tiny pieces, don’t you!), kohlrabi (for gorgeous crunchy texture), spring onions, parsley and a tiny bit of garlic in my quinoa salad.
Feel free to mix up your vegetables as you wish – spinach and kale would work as the leafy green. You could also add some chopped nuts, dried fruit or even some cooked chickpeas. I’m going to make an autumnal version of this with apple, kale and walnuts as soon as kale starts appearing in our veg boxes.
I’ve opted for chopping my veg up into tiny pieces, something that takes just a few seconds with the use of a small handheld food processor like the one pictured below. A knife would work too, as veg chopping can be quite a therapeutic and relaxing thing to do if you have the time.
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Regular readers to my blog will be familiar with the Pomora badge in my sidebar – it’s been there for a good few years now. Pomora is a small Italian olive oil company where, in exchange for ‘adopting’ an olive tree with a quarterly subscription, you receive twelve tins of olive oil throughout the year.
My oil comes from Antonio’s olive groves in Campania, and I’ve just received the summertime delivery of extra virgin olive oil. The complex flavours of this oil intertwine, marrying with a healthy finishing kick to produce a great base for vinaigrettes, focaccia or simply as a dip. I’ve used some of mine in the lemon vinaigrette in this recipe which provides a summer citrus kick to this vibrant salad.
Quinoa is a rather versatile ingredient too and it’s packed full of vegetarian protein. To cook it, simply bring twice the quantity of salted water to the boil and simmer your rinsed quinoa for 10-15 minutes until the little tails appear.
I often throw a handful into soups for a little extra protein and fibre.
Pictured above and below, I served some of this deliciously crunchy salad with some hot smoked chilli salmon for a quick and easy lunch.
If you’re fancying a quinoa salad and mine isn’t quite what you’re looking for, you might also like Helen’s quinoa, bulgar, feta & chilli salad, Dannii’s quinoa Greek salad, Emily’s aromatic lamb and warm grain salad or Ceri’s radish and radish top pesto quinoa salad with yellow courgettes, pine nuts and feta. Diana does a lovely herb salmon with garlic kale and quinoa prawn salad, while Janice does a quinoa with summer roasted vegetables and harissa marinade.
You might also like Helen’s Mediterranean Chicken, Quinoa & Chia Burgers, Emily’s coriander turkey kebabs with feta, quinoa & couscous salad, Choclette’s quinoa, watercress, walnut and blue cheese salad with roasted asparagus or Camilla’s warm rice and quinoa salad with pan-fried tofu.
What’s your favourite way to work with extra virgin olive oil or quinoa? Let me know in the comments!
Vegan Summer Quinoa Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette
Ingredients
for the quinoa salad
- 200 grams quinoa
- 80 grams rainbow chard or spinach, kale, etc.
- 1 red bell peppers
- 1 medium carrot
- 3 spring onions
- 1 medium kohlrabi
- 1 small salad beetroot
- 1 handful fresh parsley
- 1 garlic clove
for the lemon vinaigrette
- 1 lemon juice & zest
- 1 tsp caster sugar (optional)
- 0.5 tsp Dijon mustard
- 70 ml extra virgin olive oil (I use Pomora, see badge in sidebar)
- Shetland sea salt to taste
- freshly ground black pepper to taste
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Instructions
- Bring 1 pint/600 ml of salted water to the boil and cook the quinoa for 10-15 minutes, until the little tails appear. Drain and rinse under cold water to cool. Set aside.
- Finely chop the rainbow chard, red pepper, carrot, spring onions, kohlrabi, salad beetroot and garlic and toss, with the quinoa, in a large bowl.
- To make the lemon viniagrette, place all the ingredients in a small jar, pop the lid on and shake for a few seconds.
- Pour the dressing over the salad, toss again and spoon into a serving bowl.
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POMORA OLIVE OIL GIVEAWAY
Pomora have kindly offered my UK readers the chance to win a shipment of 3 x 250 ml tins of extra virgin olive oil worth £39! To enter, simply fill out the Rafflecopter entry form below!
HOW TO ENTER
For your chance to win a shipment of 3 x 250 ml tins of extra virgin olive oil worth £39 enter using the Rafflecopter form below. Come back and tweet about the giveaway every day for more chances to win!
TERMS & CONDITIONS
This giveaway is open to UK entries only. Entrants must be age 18 or over. The winner will need to respond within 28 days of being contacted; failure to do this may result in another winner being selected.
The prize is offered and provided by Pomora. The prize is to win a shipment of 3 x 250 ml tins of extra virgin olive oil worth £39. There is no cash alternative and the prize is not transferable.
There is no entry fee and no purchase is necessary to enter this giveaway. The promoter (Elizabeth’s Kitchen Diary) reserves the right to cancel or amend the giveaway and these terms and conditions without notice.
Entry into our giveaways will be deemed as acceptance of these terms and conditions.
If you need some help using Rafflecopter, here’s a quick clip to show you how. Rafflecopter will pick the winner at random from all the entries received.
Closing date is midnight (that’s 00:00 hours, 12 am on Sunday night/Monday morning) on Monday 20 August 2018 (GMT) and the winner will be announced shortly afterwards.
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This is not a paid post, although Elizabeth’s Kitchen Diary does receive regular quarterly shipments of olive oil from Pomora. Thank you for supporting the brands who make it possible for me to do what I love: mess up my kitchen and share recipe stories.
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This looks amazing, fresh and so simple to prepare. I am still dazzled by all the different kinds of quinoa. The colours in this salad are tremendous.
This recipe looks delicious, I use olive oil in all my salads x
I always invest in a decent olive oil as its so tasty drizzled over a salad and so much healthier Than a salad sauce!
I use olive oil in all my cooking. I love salads but not a fan of quinoa
It’s a delicious recipe that I’ll try. I use olive oil on salad and to roast aubergines.
I will definitely make this recipe – I love quinoa and I usually make it like a greek salad but this recipe looks so vibrant and tasty! I add olive oil in all my dishes every day!
I love olive oil with salad or I use with salmon
This sounds really tasty and looks great too! I don’t often cook with olive oil but I’d like to more – I mainly just use it for salads now 🙂
This looks delicious! I don’t use much oil in recipes, but love it on salads.
I love your recipe – I try to use olive oil in any dishes that require oil as I believe it is the healthier option.
I forgot to say. I’ve just started using olive oil on my salads instead of mayonnaise x
I would like to try this recipe. I’m yet to try quinoa, shock horror x
I would love to make more salads like this for my fanily but my toddler is going through an extemely fussy phase. I’ll keep trying! I use olive oil for everything but love it on baguettes.
I’d love to try this salad. I love lemon. We cook with olive oil most days. I adore the taste.
Not a fan of quinoa but do love olive oil on a salad
love to add to salads as a dressing and i cook vegetables in it as a side dish, cant beat dipping bread into olive oil
I went vegan in January so I am always on the look out for good vegan recipes. I love quinoa and citrus together so will deffo be trying the recipe.
I love the look of this salad although I would have beetroot in mine, I use olive oil all the time when cooking and on salads
Sounds delicious. I will try all these recipes
This looks so delicious. I am never entirely sure what to do with quinoa so you’ve given me a great idea. Thank you. With olive oil I am very unadventurous, I just use it to fry things generally. I would love to try a bit more with it.
Looks tasty – I always use Extra Virgin
I’ve only had quinoa once and found it a bit bland, possibly as I wasnt sure what to add to it. This looks very tasty, the lemon vinagarette sounds delicious and I love the added vegatables for taste and texture. I use olive oil for frying, as a dressing and I use olive spread too especially in cakes as it makes them very light and moist. No after taste and doesnt taste greasy like other oils tend too.
I use a dash of olive oil and toss some cooked pasta and veggies in it and have it for lunch quite often
It sounds nice. I make roasted summer veg with olive oil.
Looks tasty. I love a good quality olive oil on salads.
It looks a lovely colourful and filling salad. I am not a fan of those watery salads full of leaves. This looks amazing! I rarely use oil. I use a little for frying but that’s about it.
Love the sound of this salad! I’m a big fan of salads, love fresh foods. Usually use olive oil for frying or in salad dressings
looks tasty perfect for summer i use oilve oil for cooking and dressings
the salad looks lovely – I use olive oil for marinades and ,dressings as well as in everyday cooking
Ideal to go with a barbecue or salmon I’d say, I use olive oil mostly as a dressing
This recipe looks great and really tasty.
I make lots of different salads with olive oil.
This recipe looks delicious. I have never used quinoa before but would love to try it. I am trying to eat healthier and olive oil would be perfect to use instead of other oils
would love to try, i love olive oil and use it in most dishes x
I’m not a great fan of quinoa because although it’s supposedly gluten free it always seems to upset my tum. But I’d gladly eat the rest of the salad – yum!
I use olive oil for all my cooking because, again, other oils often upset my tum. One way I use it is to pop a tiny amount into a bowl and toss potatoes in it before popping them in the oven to roast. It gives them a lovely crisp outer coating without making them oily.
The recipe sounds delicious x I use oil a lot in dressings.
The recipe looks lovely. I use oil to cook in the actifry
I always cook with olive oil. Love the recipe although I would probably add a few chilli flakes
This looks amazing and I love Olive oil, a taste of the Mediterranean
Yeah that recipe sounds delicious. Perfect for this time of year. I love good oil on homemade bread.
A great vibrant salad for the summer!
What a tasty looking recipe! I use olive oil for so many things, even just to dip bread in with a bit of balsamic added, simply gorgeous!
I absolutely love the sound of this recipe 🙂 just my kind of food! My favourite way to use olive oil is just a simple pasta dressing – I bung lemon juice, olive oil and some seasoning, then shake it all together with pasta!
The salad looks light and tasty – perfect for a summer barbeque
A great vibrant salad for the summer! Any combination of grains and lemon always is a winner I think
I have only ever tryed Qinoa with salad, i may have to try it in other ways
My son has developed food allergies so has been put on a restricted diet, this would be a perfect dish to try, light and full of flavour. I use olive oil in for cooking and dressings and I also have a couple of great baking recipes I use it for
The recipe sounds scrumptious; personally I like using olive oil in making a vinagriette or some home made mayonnaise.
I love freshly baked bread dipped in a good olive oil
It looks lovely quinoa is one of my favourite, I use olive oil mostly in my salad dressings
A gorgeous salad that would make a tasty change from tabbouleh, our summer staple. I save my top-notch olive oils for salads or drizzling, as I think heating it spoils the taste, so I use a light-flavoured olive oil or sunflower oil for frying and roasting.
looks delicious! I love olive oil in salad
Love a quinoa salad, this looks like another great one to add to the collection!
This recipe looks amazing! Definitely one that I need to try out. I just made some homemade pesto today with olive oil and homegrown basil.
I love the look of this! I’d use olive oil in a dressing for it.
It’s a recipe I’m gonna give a try! I use olive oil in spag bol and lasagne – vegetarian, of course!!
This salad look like too good & tasty!
That salad looks sooooooooooooo good!
The salad looks lovely. I use olive oil in salad dressings, and in recipes.
Looks lovely – use olive oil but must admit I’m never sure which one is best to use in what dish x
My Mam would love this salad! I use oil in most things that I cook especially in salad dressings
This looks really good and I like to follow a healthy Mediterranean diet
This looks a really useful recipe, except for the leafy greens. I know they are super healthy, but I just don’t like the metalic taste of them. Olive oil and lemon is a winning combination, just yummy. Good olive oil is lovely with bread to dip.
I love this salad but we use so much olive oil as a family Pomora is a little too expensive.
delicious , love olive oil in a chicken salad
I love to cook a delicious chicken salad with olive oil
only because I`m a fussy eater, this salad wouldnt be for me but like salads in general, olive oil used for frying and drizzling over food
I go through lots of olive oil for dressings and cooking. My middle names are salad queen so I love the look of this recipe. Will be trying it very soon. Thank you!
The salad looks lovely and very healthy. I do use olive oil in a lot of my cooking.
the salad looks delicious, I like to use olive oil drizzled om bread with cheese
looks yummy we use olive oil in alot of our dressings
This salad recipe sounds delicious and I like to cook pasta and salads with olive oil.
This looks really nice, still pretty new to cooking etc so will try making a few more dishes with olive oil. Thankyou for the competition x
A delicious recipe full of flavour – love oil as a salad dressing and a side to dip bread in
The recipe sound lovely and light and I use a light olive oil for frying and a rich olive oil for dressings
The recipe looks delicious. I use olive oil for salad dressings
It looks yummy, love olive oil for dipping bread
Delicious looking salad….i love to cook with quinoa and I use olive oil in most of my cooking
This looks incredibly tasty and definitely something I’m going to make , probably this weekend! Thank you for inspiring me xx
this sounds like somethign id love to try to make myself! i love using olive oil in salads
I think your recipe seems very tasty and satisfying. I like olive oil on my salads, in italian dishes, and for light stir-friess.
I think this salad recipe sounds beautiful i’d love to try it, Myself personally i cook with olive oil on meals like fish but never thought of using it with a salad.
This looks so good Elizabeth, I do love quinoa salad and especially with salmon – a lovely summery meal. Thanks for linking to my salad:-)
An interesting recipe although I’m not mad about beetroot I dress salads with olive oil and add it to vegetables towards the end of roasting.
It looks delicious. I love olive oil in salad dressings