beet-quinoa salad

This week, for whatever reason, I got really excited about beets. So, this week will feature two beet recipes. Here's the first: a Beet-Quinoa salad I made for dinner last night.




Adapted from "Quinoa, Beet, and Arugula Salad," at Allrecipes.com


Ingredients
2 medium-sized beets, peeled and sliced
1 cup quinoa
2 cups water
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1 1/2 teaspoons white sugar
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
beet greens, chopped
goat cheese, crumbled, to taste


Directions

1. Place a steamer insert into a saucepan, and fill with water to just below the bottom of the steamer. Cover pan and bring the water to a boil. Add beets, cover pan, and steam until just tender, 7 to 10 minutes. Set aside. 
2. Bring quinoa and 2 cups water a saucepan over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until the quinoa is tender and the liquid has been absorbed, about 15 minutes. 
3. While the quinoa is cooking, whisk olive oil, red wine vinegar, sugar, garlic, salt, and black pepper together in a large bowl. 
4. Remove quinoa from heat, then immediately add half of the vinegar dressing while fluffing the quinoa with a fork; reserve remaining dressing. Cover and refrigerate quinoa until cool, at least 1 hour. 
5. Stir green onions, arugula, goat cheese, beets, and remaining dressing into cooled quinoa mixture. Toss lightly before serving. 

It's a beet!





The beets are all sliced up and placed in the steamer.





Ta-da! The final salad.





The recipe says it makes enough for 6 servings. I think mine will last at least that long. I just used the goat cheese at the end, rather than mixing it all in with the bowl. That way, I can still use it for something else later in the week!


This salad was really tasty! I think the goat cheese really finishes it off well! And the beet greens taste just like a spinach. Delicious!