Easy Quinoa Salad

**Edit** -- Got an email yesterday from Brian saying his lunch was really good, but the salad was particularly tasty. Yes, this salad! Try it!

This salad is as basic as it comes -- quinoa, veggies, simple dressing -- and is open to infinite variation. It's quite tasty! The original version comes from the Savvy Vegetarian site and I've made only a few modifications.

For one thing, I like my veggies cut in finer pieces. I sliced the carrot in fourths lengthwise almost to the top, then cut thin pieces off.

I love the look of snap peas cut on the diagonal. Crisp and crunchy, they add wonderful texture to the salad.

By the way, I omitted the nuts because I tend to have a few for a snack and didn't want to overdo it, but I bet they'd be great in the salad.

Simple Quinoa Salad

1 cup quinoa

1-1/2 cups cold water

1/4 tsp salt

1 to 1-1/2 cups mixed raw or nuked veggies (snow peas, celery, green beans, corn)

2 small carrots, peeled, sliced in thin rounds (or half or quarter rounds)

1/2 red bell pepper, chopped

1/2 medium cucumber, chopped (seed or peel if necessary)

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley, cilantro, or basil (if using basil, add tomatoes to salad)

1/2 cup chopped nuts or seeds (optional)

Dressing

2 Tbs lemon juice

2 Tbs olive oil

1/4 tsp salt

freshly ground pepper

optional: a little other herb or spice (garlic, cumin, ginger, thyme, etc.)

1.     Prepare quinoa by rinsing thoroughly in cold water, draining well, then bringing to a boil with the cold water and salt. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer 15 min. Cool to at least lukewarm.

2.     Combine quinoa with veggies and optional nuts or seeds in a large bowl.

3.     Whisk dressing ingredients together and pour over salad. Mix well. Enjoy!

Mediterranean Lentil Salad

Aren't these beautiful lentils? I love the streaks of color on each little bean. I bought them from a bulk bin and they weren't labeled, so I don't know what kind they are.

This lentil salad is one of my favorites -- I make it often, especially in the summer. I vary the ingredients a bit, using chopped fennel instead of celery, or adding a shredded carrot.  The red bell pepper was not on the original list of ingredients, but I always add that now because Brian is not fond of the little tomatoes and I like the added color. Sometimes I add the tomatoes anyway (easy enough to eat around them), but I still use the red pepper.

Mediterranean Lentil Salad

This salad is especially beautiful with black lentils, which are hard to find around here.

1-1/4 cups uncooked lentils 

2-1/2 cups water

3 Tbs. lemon juice

1-1/2 Tbs. olive oil

1/2+ tsp. thyme (or other herb to taste)

1/4 tsp. salt

1/8 tsp. black pepper

1 clove garlic, minced or pressed

grape tomatoes (optional)

1 cup diced cucumber (I seed the cuke)

1/2 cup thinly sliced celery

finely chopped red onion

1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese (can I make a salad without feta?)

Place the lentils and water in a large saucepan; bring to a boil. Cover; reduce the heat, and simmer for 20 min or until the lentils are tender. Drain well and set aside. Combine the lemon juice, olive oil, thyme, salt, pepper, and garlic in a medium bowl; stir with a wire whisk until blended. Add the tomatoes, cucumber, cheese, celery, and onion to the lentils and pour the dressing over. Toss gently to coat. 
 This is an adaptation, but I don't know where the original recipe came from.

Leftovers are delicious tossed with a green salad. Add other things, too -- I see some shredded beets in here, and there's probably some other stuff, too...

All Week Pasta Salad

Younger daughter here with my first post! I haven't been carrying my weight in the salad-making department, but today I made an extremely weighty salad, hoping to make up for some lost time: this veggie-laden pasta salad, so big I had to stir it in my largest pot because it didn't fit in any mixing bowls. (The photo here shows the salad after a few portions were put in lunch containers.)

The weather here on the east coast is hot and muggy, making it perfect salad weather, so I figured I'd make an enormous salad for my roommate and me (and a few friends) to eat for dinner tonight--and to eat for lunch all week. It's just a pound of pasta and whatever veggies caught my eye, and I plan to add things throughout the week to change it up: soy chicken or tofu, more beans, other veggies. It can also work with any dressing, though I've made a big bottle of Rolf's Mother's Chinese Dressing to use, now that my mom's post reminded me how much I like it!

Here's a list of what's in this iteration of the salad, though it's good with whatever vegetables are fresh and on hand:

• a pound of whole wheat elbow macaroni
• a pound of fresh broccoli, cut into small florets and tossed in with the pasta when it was almost done cooking
• ten ounces of frozen peas, tossed in with the pasta and broccoli
• a bag of carrots, peeled and shredded
• two large zucchini, shredded
• two cans of kidney beans, rinsed and drained
• a bunch of radishes, sliced thin
• eight ribs of celery, chopped