Quinoa Vegetable Salad

Are you afraid of QUINOA?? I have to admit I was. I was very resistant to trying it - who wants to eat something that looks like that? Ew. Plus, it's supposed to be really good for you. Double ew. Not that I'm against eating healthy - I actually strive to serve my family healthy, well rounded meals every night - but I'm not a freak about it - and I'm certainly not going to serve something that doesn't taste delicious - and we all know that sometimes "healthy food" means it's flavorless and well... ew.

The other thing I didn't like about quinoa was that all the recipes I've read say that you have to rinse it and even though that isn't a big deal - I just didn't want to have to fuss with it. Then, I found "C&F brand Premium organic quinoa" at Costco - it has been rinsed and is ready to go - I just put it in my rice cooker and voila!

BUT - I am here to tell you that I actually LOVE QUINOA!! Yes, it's true. The trick is to pair it with things you love AND a delicious, tried and true dressing.

I planned to have the left overs for lunch the next day - all that protein!! But, there weren't any leftovers:)

Quinoa Vegetable Salad
1 cup quinoa - prepared per package directions
Cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
Orange bell pepper, diced
15 oz can of garbonzo beans (chick peas)
Green onion, diced
1 c corn
Cilantro Lime Vinaigrette

Combine all ingredients and refrigerate until ready to eat. I generally make the quinoa ahead of time so it can cool down and then go into the fridge with the rest of the components for a nice cold, light salad.

*I LOVE Watts Brothers organic super sweet white corn, in the freezer section. It's so good my kids eat it frozen or run under some water for a minute to thaw for a snack all the time.