Summer Quinoa Salad

While I was taking the dog(s) for a walk this morning, I told myself that I'd either go to the gym after and run a quick mile OR I would clean the house.  And it's two hours later and I haven't done either.  But now that I'm finally gearing up to clean, I decided I HAD to share this recipe I made last week.  I got it from one of my favorite blogs, 100 Days of Real Food, and while I edited a few pieces of the recipe, we loved it! (and I was mad at my husband for taking the leftovers to work)

This was my first time cooking with quinoa (keen-wah) and while the texture is a little different to get used to, the salad is so delicious and so very worth it.  (Little note on quinoa: Quinoa is close to one of the most complete foods in nature because it contains amino acids, enzymes, vitamins and minerals, fiber, antioxidants, and phytonutrients, according to bodyecology)

Salad:
3 cups cooked quinoa (follow directions on package)
3/4 C dried fruit - (I used regular and golden raisins, dried apricots and cranberries)
1/4 C nuts, toasted (the original recipe called for pine nuts but I used slivered almonds and it was great)
1/4 C cilantro, chopped
1 bell pepper of any color, diced (I used yellow)
1 chicken breast, cooked and shredded (the original recipe didn't call for this but I wanted to add a little meat to the salad.  I seasoned the chicken breast with a little salt, red pepper and cumin and put in a saucepan.  Then I put 1 cup water in the saucepan and let the chicken cook on med-high until no longer pink.  I also added a few tablespoons of lime juice after I made the dressing and had extra lime)

Dressing:
1/4 C lime juice
1/4 C olive oil
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
2 garlic cloves, minced
pinch of salt

Directions:
Mix all dressing ingredients together in separate bowl.  Add to combined salad ingredients.  Serve immediately or refrigerate.  

Thanks to 100 Days of Real Food for this great recipe! 

And thanks for the cleaning inspiration!