Spring Quinoa Salad with Artichokes, Feta, and Asparagus

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Spring Quinoa Salad with Artichokes, Feta, and Asparagus

When I first wrote this post, we had just gotten back from an awesome Vegas vacay. It was so good to get back into the swing of things and back in the routine of the girls’ classes and lessons, teaching fitness classes, and catching up on work stuff.  It also felt good to eat some home-cooked food! When we travel, I try to stick to one indulgent meal each day and go for my normal eats for the most part, but Vegas is a little different. It was easy for me to make healthy choices for breakfast, but you definitely have to take advantage of all of the fantastic entree and dessert options. 😉

I was also like, “I can’t wait to eat a vegetable when we get back” but then I looked in our fridge, it was pretty much empty, and I ended up eating coconut milk salted caramel ice cream for lunch. I guess I was still in Vegas mode. 😉 Once I was finally able to replenish the fridge, I created this little on-the-fly salad with some of the new grocery stash.

This salad is perfect for any upcoming spring parties or picnics, and includes two of the “great A’s”: artichokes and asparagus. It has fresh, flavorful, and bright lemon flavors from the lemon juice + zest, and since it’s quinoa-based, it’s sturdy enough to last a few days in the fridge so you can make it in advance! I made it as part of this week’s meal prep (along with some grilled chicken, amazeballs, and protein baked oatmeal) so I could easily eat it alone on top of salad greens or with grilled chicken or tuna for an easy lunch.

This salad is filling and satisfying, plus it’s gluten-free. Vegan friends can omit the feta cheese, or add in their favorite vegan cheese, for a vegan option

Plus it’s one of those, “toss everything in a bowl and forget about it” kinda recipes, which means I’m a fan.

How to Make a Quinoa Salad

• Always rinse quinoa for about a minute in a fine mesh strainer before cooking
  • Rinsing removes the phytic acid that makes quinoa harder to digest for some people
  • Rinsing also removes the bitter flavor
• For perfectly fluffy quinoa, use 1 3/4 cup of water for every 1 cup of quinoa
• This salad is just as delicious with roast veggies (roasted asparagus and artichoke instead of raw)
• This salad pairs wonderfully with light entrees like grilled salmon, shrimp, tuna, or chicken
• Feel free to mix in other ingredients like red onion, snap peas, fresh herbs, or lean meat

Spring quinoa salad with asparagus and artichokes

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A bright and savory spring salad you can make in advance for parties, or as part of weekly meal prep! Gluten-free + easy vegan option

• Prep Time: 20
• Total Time: 20 minutes
• Yield: 6 1x

Ingredients

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• 1 1/2 cups quinoa, rinsed and cooked according to package directions. (Let it cool a bit before assembling the salad so the cheese doesn’t melt)
• 4 oz feta cheese
• 1 bunch of asparagus, washed and chopped into fourths
• 1 jar of marinated arti chokes, quartered (12 oz)
• 1 lemon; zest and juice
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• Fresh basil for garnish
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• Salt and pepper

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Instructions

1. 1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the asparagus and boil for 2-3 minutes, then rinse with cold water.
2. 2. Add the asparagus to the quinoa, along with the lemon juice, zest, garlic powder, olive oil, feta, and artichokes. Mix well, then season well with salt and pepper.
3. 3. Top with fresh chopped basil.

Notes

• This tastes amazing the day you make it, but even better the next day! Keep covered in the fridge for 3-5 days.

What’s your favorite spring salad combo? Another one of my very favorite recipes for this time of year is here! It’s Uncle Eric’s best pasta salad ever, which is always a hit.

Have a wonderful morning and I’ll see ya soon!

xo

Gina