Recipe 11 Quinoa and Black Bean Salad

It has been a while since I have posted a recipe (there are a few I should put on here) but this is a new family favorite and needs to be done first. Red Quinoa and Black Bean Salad was featured on The Pioneer Woman's Tasty Kitchen blog a while back. We love quinoa and the flavors looked good to us so we made it that night... Jeff has requested it every time I have been planning meals since that night. Let me just say that if you have tried quinoa because it is so healthy and not enjoyed it, you should try it again with this recipe. More than anything else the quinoa gives the salad texture, it is the other flavors that make it so good. This is a great recipe if you have time to make dinner in the morning but not that night. The longer the flavors combine the better it tastes.

My alterations to this recipe:

- Red or original quinoa are both fine, not really a flavor difference so do not worry about finding red quinoa unless you really want the salad to be extra pretty
- I do not cook the quinoa the way the recipe tells me to, to much work. I buy mine prewashed. Add your quinoa to a pot, add in 1 and a quarter times liquid to quinoa (I use chicken stock but water would be just fine), add a little salt. Bring this to a simmer at medium heat, turn down to low heat, put a lid on the pot and let it cook on low for 30 minutes. Turn the heat off and let it sit for an additional 5 minutes, fluff with a fork and then let it cool before combining with the rest of the salad.
- I have not had access to fresh corn since using this recipe, using a drained 15 oz can of kernel corn has worked for us for now.

As you can see below, Madeline likes it as well :)


(photos taken by my very talented husband!)