CRANBERRY ORANGE AND KALE QUINOA SALAD

During our holiday meals, we usually try to have one light and refreshing dish. Either a fruit salad or cold bean salad and this year, it was a cranberry and orange quinoa salad!!

I did some traditional dishes, so my family wouldn't disown me, but I also like to add some out of the box/gourmet-ish dishes too, that nobody has ever tried. This was one of the non-traditional add-ons this year.

My family is new to Quinoa and it was well received. This recipe makes quite a bit and we had lots for people to take home for leftovers.

It's a lovely, fresh salad, that is slightly tart, but slightly sweet at the same time. I modified the recipe a little from the original Family Spice recipe by adding a little more fruit and honey. I also added a little extra mint. This is a great recipe that you can change to fit your family tastes. I hope you like it, our family did.


I was taking pictures as I was cooking for the family dinner, so some steps may be missing. There was LOTS of cooking going on! I am going to share each recipe that we made for our dinner.

Rinse, then cook the quinoa

Chop the kale and add to the hot quinoa

Peel and slice the oranges. Also use some zest and I added a little fresh juice as well. Pulse the cranberries and honey in the food processor to chop up the cranberries. Add to the quinoa mix. Add all remaining ingredients and mix well. 

Cover and chill under ready to serve.  

This dish can be made in a day or two in advance.
I felt it tasted better on the second day when all the flavors blended together. 

Cranberry Orange Quinoa Salad

Ingredients

1 cup quinoa

2 cup water

2 large leaves of kale

2 cup cranberries, fresh

2 TBS extra-virgin olive oil

1/4 cup honey

2 TBS orange zest, grated

Juice from one orange

6 small oranges, peeled and chopped

1/4 cup mixed nuts

1/4 cup pomegranate arils

1/4 cup mint, fresh, chopped

Directions

Bring 2 cups water to boil. Rinse quinoa with water and add to water. Return to a boil. 

Cover, reduce heat to low and continue to cook until the water is gone and quinoa is cooked, about 12-15 minutes.

Wash kale, remove from stems and finely chop

Pulse cranberries, honey and olive oil in a food processor to coarsely chop

When quinoa is done, transfer to a mixing bowl and mix with chopped kale. Allow to cool to room temperature and add orange zest, cranberry mixure and remaining ingredients.

Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Recipe adapted from FamilySpice.com