Strawberry Crunchy Quinoa Salad is a vibrant salad perfect for lunch or dinner! It’s tossed in an easy lemon vinaigrette and herbs.
Hello friends! Here is a brief little something for your springtime table!
A few things are upon us. The first is strawberry season! The stores are filled with beautiful strawberries and I am putting them in everything. They are divine topped over toast with ricotta cheese and honey for breakfast. They are truly something special cooked into my Spooned Summer Fruit and Small Batch Strawberry Rhubarb Preserves. (Freezer Friendly Version) and blended into my No-Churn Strawberry Ice Cream . Strawberries are especially wonderful tossed into green salads like this one. (More on that in a moment!)
The second season that is upon us is Passover. Yes yes, friends!! Passover is fast approaching and home cooks have long since begun their frenzy of menu planning and wondering how to feed the masses seated at their holiday tables.
On Passover, I try to counter all the heavy Seder eating with light lunches. Lunches are filled with small plates of cheese and fruit and vegetables alongside simple proteins like jammy eggs. I love to serve Jammy Eggs with Salad Cauliflower & Garlic Dill Yogurt often because it has a little something for everyone to enjoy (everyone assembles their own, I set out all the components). You can make this entire recipe of simply use pieces of it – all are delicious!
Strawberry Crunchy Quinoa Salad Is Easy & Delicious!
My favorite, go-to salad is my Chopped Salad with Feta & Crunchy Chickpeas because it’s filling, well balanced, and filled with flavor! But on Passover my family does not eat chickpeas, leaving me without my favorite crunch in my salads. I took my favorite salad base of chopped baby lettuce, shaved fennel, cucumbers, creamy avocado, and herbs and added fragrant strawberries, crumbled feta, warm crunchy almonds, and Crispy Quinoa.
Crispy Quinoa brings that much needed crunch and extra protein and nutrition to your meal. when you don’t want matzah.(It’s also wonderful sprinkled over yogurt with fruit!) It stores perfectly in the fridge in a glass jar with tight fitting lid. Keep a jar ready during this Passover season!
The best part of this salad is that it’s quick and versatile. The lemon vinaigrette is tangy and light and keeps well in the fridge. You can add other fruits into this salad like blueberries or stone fruits or swap the feta out for goat cheese. The choice is yours! It’s wonderful for lunch or dinner. If you want to make it dairy free, simply omit the feta cheese and add in your favorite meat based protein.
I hope you love Strawberry Crunchy Quinoa Salad!
Strawberry Crunchy Quinoa Salad
Ingredients
For the Salad:
- 6-8 oz. baby lettuce greens thinly chopped
- 1 small fennel bulb thinly sliced, fronds reserved, outer layer discarded
- ½ large English cucumber thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons fresh basil leaves thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons fresh mint leaves thinly sliced
- 1 avocado small pieces
- 7 oz. sugar snap peas thinly sliced on a bias (optional, kitniyot)
- 5-6 large Strawberries Sliced into petite wedges
- Sliced toasted almonds as desired
- 7 oz feta cheese crumbled
- crunchy quinoa as much as desired, see attached recipe in notes
For the dressing:
- 3 tb fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 6 tb extra virgin olive oil
- 3 teaspoons honey
- good pinch Kosher salt
- 3 few cracks freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Combine all dressing ingredients in a jar with a tight fitting lid and shake well until emulsified. Set aside.
- In a very large bowl, combine all salad ingredients except for the crunchy quinoa and toss well to combine.
- Right before serving, toss the crunchy quinoa through the salad. Pour the dressing over the salad and toss for one minute until the dressing has worked its way through the salad.
- Serve immediately.
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