Quinoa Vegetable Salad with Lemon-Basil Dressing

I was looking for something summery-y that would keep well for lunches throughout the week, and I came upon this salad. Quinoa is filling and healthy and this recipe is really easy to modify with whatever veggies you crave or have on hand. This dish can be used as a side in a larger meal, or as a meal in itself. Here’s my version:

Ingredients:

For the Salad:

1 cup uncooked quinoa

15 oz. can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained

4 roma tomatoes

1 orange bell pepper

1 ½ cups corn (I used frozen & thawed)

3 green onions

1 zucchini

For the Dressing:

(Once I saw how much salad this makes, I doubled the recipe so I ended up using these measurements).

4 tbsp. olive oil

1 lemon, juiced (or, 4ish tbsp. lemon juice)

AS MUCH BASIL AS YOU WANT

Garnishes:

I like to eat this on a bed of spinach with feta on top.

Directions:

1.       Rinse & cook quinoa according to the instructions. Let it cool while you do the other stuff.

2.       Whisk dressing ingredients together.

3.       Chop all veggies.

4.       Throw everything together, pour dressing over top, mix well to combine.

5.       Serve immediately; or, chill it and save for later. This makes a huge Tupperware container-full, so there’s plenty for leftovers.

6.       Enjoy your summer garden in a bowl.

Photo from The Garden Grazer