Quinoa Salad with Asparagus, Goat Cheese and Olives

This was one of those side dishes we just sort of choose of the Food Network app because we had some quinoa in the pantry.  We hoped it would be a good accompaniment to our grilled salmon but we weren't expecting it to be spectacular.  This stuff was awesome.

Grilled asparagus, tangy kalamata olives and slices of goat cheese are folded in to the quinoa and then the salad is dressed with a light red wine and mustard vinaigrette.  The goat cheese gets all melty and gooey making the quinoa nice and creamy and really very decadent.  I didn't think quinoa could be decadent, but I was wrong.

(Food Network's photo, I didn't take one...oops!)

Quinoa Salad with Asparagus, Goat Cheese and Olives, adapted from Bobby Flay
Vinaigrette
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1/2 cup olive oil
Quinoa Salad
4 cups vegetable stock
2 cups quinoa
1 medium bunch of asparagus, trimmed
olive oil for brushing
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 cup pitted kalamata olives, roughly chopped
4 ounces goat cheese sliced thin
1/4 cup chopped basil
1/4 cup parsley leaves

In a medium pot, bring the vegetable stock to a boil and then stir in the quinoa.  Bring the pot back to a boil and then cover it and reduce the heat to low.  Allow it to simmer undisturbed for 30 minutes then remove the pot from the heat and let it sit 5 minutes more.  Once done, fluff the quinoa with a fork and transfer it to a serving bowl.

While the quinoa is cooking, preheat the grill.  Put the asparagus on and lightly brush them with olive oil and season them with the salt and pepper.  Grill on both sides for about 5 minutes total.  Remove from the grill and chop into 1/2 inch pieces.  Add them to the quinoa.

Make the vinaigrette: whisk everything but the olive oil together in a small bowl.  Slowly pour in the olive oil in a steady stream while whisking constantly to emulsify.

Now add the olives, goat cheese, basil and parsley to the quinoa.  Pour over about half of the viniagrette and fold everything together.  Taste it now (delicious, right?) and add more vinaigrette to your liking.  Don't oversaturate the quinoa, you can serve the leftover vinaigrette on the side to drizzle on top.

Serve and Enjoy!

Crustless Zucchini Pie

Have you eaten your fill of zucchini yet this summer?  Apparently last summer I overdosed Mr Pears with zucchini so he has been poo-pooing all my zucchini ideas lately.  But when I saw this recipe in Whole Living, I decided I was going to make it whether he liked it or not! Luckily, he liked it. :)

This zucchini pie is a great summer side dish. We served ours with grilled salmon and it was just perfect. Though it has all the same elements as a quiche, the veggies outweigh the eggs by alot so it doesn't taste like quiche, it is just a nice light veggie bake. The dill gives it a wonderful summer flavor and I loved the sweet roasted tomatoes on top and the tangy feta cheese.  This recipe was included under "Slim-down Summer Recipes" at Whole Living but unfortunately I couldn't find any nutritional information.  I'm sure it is pretty low-cal but either way this will no doubt find its way back to our table again before the summer is over. I hope you like it is much as we did.

Crustless Zucchini Pie, adapted from Whole Living
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 lb green zucchini, cut in 1/2 inch pieces
4 scallions, chopped 4 cloves of garlic, minced
1 teaspoon dried marjoram
1 lb yellow squash, cut in 1/2 inch pieces
5 whole eggs
5 egg whites  (Save the yolks for making ice cream)
1/2 cup fresh dill, chopped  (if you are using dried dill weed, you won't need nearly as much)
1 large tomato, thinly sliced
2 oz low-fat feta cheese

Heat 1 teaspoon of olive oil in a large saute pan over medium heat.  Add the zucchini and half of the scallions, garlic and marjoram.  Salt and pepper them and then let them cook about five minutes, or until they are a bit softened and browned.  Pour that all into a large bowl and then repeat the process for the yellow squash.

Preheat the oven to 325 F.

In a smaller bowl lightly beat together the eggs and whites and then pour them over the squash and zucchini in the large bowl.  Add the dill and mix it all together.  Pour everything into a 2 quart pie dish and then top it with the sliced tomato and crumbled feta.

Bake for 1 hour or until the top is set.  This can be served either hot or at room temperature.  Enjoy!