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–+ servings
Quinoa Salad served in three side-dish bowls with dandelion greens and fresh dill in the background
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5 from 12 votes

Warm Quinoa Salad

Course: main course, salad, side dish
Cuisine: American
Keyword: festive, healthy
Servings: 6 side-dish servings
Calories: 261kcal
Author: Judy DeLorenzo

Equipment

  • covered pan with steaming basket
  • pan for cooking quinoa
  • high-speed blender (or other blender)

Ingredients

To make the Creamy Dill Dressing

  • 2/3 cup raw cashews
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 2 Tablespoons chopped fresh dill weed, or 1 to 1-1/2 teaspoons dry dill weed
  • 1/2 teaspoon Himalayan sea salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon Judy's Sage and Rosemary Blend (see notes), optional but wonderful
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 Tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

To make the Warm Quinoa Salad

  • 1 large sweet potato, cubed
  • 1 cup dry quinoa
  • 1/4 pound dandelion greens
  • 4 to 5 scallions, sliced thin
  • 1/4 cup dried cranberries, such as Made In Nature brand

Instructions

  • Place all of the dressing ingredients into a high speed blender. Don't blend quite yet; set aside.
    If you don't have a high speed blender you'll need to either pre-soak or pre-cook the cashews (see notes).
  • Steam the cubed sweet potato until tender when poked with a paring knife.
  • In the meantime, rinse then cook the quinoa using the "pasta method". Try to time it so the quinoa is ready when the sweet potato is cooked.
  • While the sweet potato and quinoa are cooking, prepare the dandelion greens. Wash the dandelions and drain. Cut off the stems (set aside to be used for another recipe) then chop the leaves into thin slices. Put them into a large serving bowl.
  • Put the hot cooked sweet potatoes and quinoa into the bowl with the dandelion greens; the heat will wilt the greens just right. Add the chopped scallions and dried cranberries.
  • Blend the dressing well, scraping the sides of your blender jar as needed. If you have a high speed blender, the dressing will become hot and steamy.
    Pour the dressing over the quinoa salad. Gently fold until everything is combined and serve.

Notes

  • You can substitute chopped spinach or chopped arugula for the dandelion greens if you prefer.
  • No high-speed blender? No problem. You can make the Creamy Dill Dressing with a non high-speed blender or bullet blender – but you'll have to either presoak or precook the cashews first.
    • To presoak cashews: Place the cashews in a bowl with at least 1-1/3 cups of water; cover with a kitchen towel and let them soak for 3 hours or overnight in the refrigerator. Drain and rinse well. Now the cashews are recipe-ready.
    • To precook cashews: Gently simmer the cashews in at least 1-1/3 cups of water for 15 minutes. Drain and rinse well. Now the cashews are recipe-ready.
  • To make Judy's Sage and Rosemary Blend: Blend equal amounts of dried sage and dried rosemary using a spice grinder or bullet blender.

Nutrition

Calories: 261kcal | Carbohydrates: 41g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 194mg | Potassium: 571mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 10054IU | Vitamin C: 12mg | Calcium: 79mg | Iron: 3mg