February is Apple Month. We're so lucky to have access to fresh, crispy, delicious, nutritious, local apples in the winter here in BC!
One of my go-to afternoon snacks is an apple, a handful of nuts and seeds (usually almonds, walnuts, pumpkin seeds and sunflower seeds), and a piece of aged cheddar cheese, but sometimes I branch out with my apple consumption and bake them into a decadent apple pie or crisp (check out this recipe for my amazing walnut ginger apple crumble).
I had not, however, used apples in a salad before, and as I'm really trying to make my salads more snazzy (so I'll eat more of them) I got really excited when I saw Julie Van Rosendaal's quinoa salad recipe.
BC Tree Fruits is having a recipe contest between seven local chefs, foodies and celebs this month – Julie is one of them. You can see the rest of the recipes, including the super yummy hyssop caramel apple jam from Cibo Trattoria and Uva Wine Bar's executive chef Faizal Kassam (which I've also tried and loved), at applemonth.com, and by voting for your favourite recipe you could win a luxury Okanagan getaway!
Quinoa Salad with BC Apples, Chickpeas, Feta and Curry
Serves 4
Ingredients
- 1 cup quinoa, rinsed in a fine sieve
- 1/4 cup golden or sultana raisins
- 19 oz (540ml) canned chickpeas, rinsed and drained
- large handful flat-leaf parsley, chopped
- 1/2 cup crumbled feta
- 1 tart BC Tree Fruits apple, chopped, skin on
- 1/4 cup canola or olive oil
- 2 tbsp rice vinegar or lemon juice
- 1 tsp honey
- 1/4 tsp curry paste or powder
- 1/2 cup toasted walnuts or almonds
Instructions
- Cook quinoa according to package directions, and set aside in a wide salad bowl to cool.
- Add the raisins while the quinoa is still warm so they plump up.
- Once cooled, add the chickpeas, parsley, feta and apple.
- Shake the olive oil, vinegar, honey and curry together in a jar, and drizzle over the quinoa salad.
- Toss, then sprinkle with nuts just before serving.