Quinoa and Garden Fresh Vegetables

Combine any of your favorite fresh vegetables with quinoa for a great side dish or serve it as an entrée for a summer luncheon. Quinoa is one of the few plant foods that is a complete protein. It has a wonderful nutty texture and it cooks as easy as rice.

Ingredients

4 cups fat-free chicken broth

2 cups quinoa

1 cup chopped tomato

1 cup chopped onions

1 cup chopped zucchini

1 cup chopped peppers

1 cup corn

1/2 cup chopped parsley

Dressing

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/4 cup white wine vinegar

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon honey

1/4 cup fresh basil

salt and pepper to taste

Directions

In a large saucepan, add chicken broth and bring to a boil. Add quinoa, stir and cover pan. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and continue to boil gently for 20 minutes. Remove cover and fluff with a fork. Continue to cook over warm heat, uncovered, until broth has been absorbed. Pour cooked quinoa on a large rimmed baking pan to cool to room temperature.

In a large bowl, combine tomatoes, onion, zucchini, peppers, corn, and parsley. Add cooled quinoa. In a small food processor combine all dressing ingredients. Pour over quinoa and vegetables. Stir to mix well. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Note: 2 cups raw quinoa will make 8 cups of cooked quinoa. Choose any variety of fresh vegetables.

Serves 10

Nutritional Information Per Serving

Calories 220

Fat, gm.  7

Protein, gm. 7

Carbs, gm.   31

Cholesterol, mg. 0

Fiber, gm. 3.8

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