Strawberry Quinoa Salad

Looking for a summer quinoa salad? You’ll love this strawberry quinoa salad with goat cheese, cucumbers, candied nuts and a homemade vinaigrette!

What are your favorite ingredients for a summer salad? I ADORE strawberries in my salads, and where there are strawberries, there will often be goat cheese and candied nuts. They just seem meant to be, wouldn’t you agree?

Typically I see this in a spinach salad, which is DELICIOUS, but sometimes I like a super hearty salad filled with all of the things. Quinoa salad checks the box for me for heartiness! This particular salad recipe makes a ton, so it’s great for bringing along to a potluck and you want to much sure you have enough. (Are people still doing potlucks)!?

I’ve added a bunch of different veggies and other goodies to this salad, and I think you’re going to love it!

What goes into this strawberry quinoa salad?

Other than the obvious cooked (and cooled) quinoa and diced strawberries, this salad contains:

• diced cucumber
• diced bell pepper
• pepitas
• sunflower seeds
• cooked chickpeas
• candied nuts
• goat cheese

I use my favorite healthy candied walnuts in this recipe but you could use candied pecans if you would prefer! The last couple of times I’ve eaten this I also threw in a few black olives, but only because I’m OBSESSED with olives and they’re pretty much a necessity to any salad for me. So throw those in as well, if you’d like!

You can also decide whether you want plain, cooked chickpeas or if you want to add crispy chickpeas instead. My vote is for crispy!

How do you make this summer quinoa salad?

I usually start by cooking up the quinoa, because it needs time to cool, about an hour after cooking. I’ve used white quinoa in this recipe but I’ve also made this with red quinoa and it was delicious too!

While the quinoa is cooking and cooling, start dicing up the other fruits and vegetables. If you plan on doing crispy chickpeas for the salad, this is also a good time to get those roasting in the oven. I do this by spreading out the rinsed and dried chickpeas on a baking sheet and tossing them with a bit of olive oil and sea salt. Roast the chickpeas for about 20 minutes or until crispy, shaking once or twice during the cooking process.

Once the quinoa is properly cooled, toss it together with all of other ingredients and whisk together the dressing ingredients. 

What kind of dressing does this salad have?

What’s better for a summer quinoa salad than a light, tangy vinaigrette? It’s made of olive oil, apple cider vinegar, maple syrup and lemon juice. 

Toss the dressing with the salad ingredients, and either serve right away or store it in the fridge until ready to eat. You can absolutely make this salad in advance and keep it in the fridge for up to 2 days! The only things I wouldn’t mix in ahead of time are the crispy chickpeas (if you’re using them) and candied nuts, or they’ll go soft in the fridge. I like to add these just before serving!

If you’re looking for a summer salad to take along to a friend’s house or just to serve up to your family, you’ve got to give this quinoa salad a try!

Some other great salad recipes for the summer:

• grilled Romaine Caesar salad
• Mexican street corn pasta salad
• healthy cabbage salad

Strawberry Quinoa Salad

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5 from 5 reviews

• Author: Katherine | Love In My Oven
• Total Time: 45 minutes
• Yield: 4–5 servings 1x
• Diet: Gluten Free

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Description

Looking for a summer quinoa salad? You’ll love this strawberry quinoa salad with goat cheese, cucumbers, candied nuts and a homemade vinaigrette!

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Ingredients

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• 1 cup quinoa, uncooked
• 1 cup cooked chickpeas*
• 1/2 cucumber, diced
• 1/2 yellow (or green) bell pepper, diced
• 2 cups fresh strawberries, diced
• 1/2 cup pepitas
• 1/4 cup sunflower seeds
• 1/2 cup healthy candied walnuts or candied pecans
• 1/2 cup goat cheese, crumbled

Vinaigrette

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 1 tbsp maple syrup
• juice of 1/2 lemon
• salt and pepper, to taste

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Instructions

1. Add the uncooked quinoa to a saucepan along with 2 cups of water or vegetable stock and turn the heat to medium-high. Once the liquid starts simmering, turn the temperature down to low and place the lid on, cooking for about 15 minutes. Remove the saucepan from heat and allow it to sit for 10-15 minutes before removing to a large salad bowl and allowing it to cool.
2. Once cooled, add the cooked (or crispy) chickpeas, cucumber, bell pepper, fresh strawberries, pepitas, sunflower seeds, candied nuts and goat cheese.
3. Prepare the vinaigrette by whisking together the dressing ingredients. Pour the dressing over the salad and toss everything to combine. Serve immediately or store in the fridge for later use.

Store leftover salad in the fridge for up to 2-3 days.

**Make ahead tip: Make the salad up to 1-2 days ahead of time, keeping it in the fridge until ready to serve.

Notes

*If you want to use crispy chickpeas, rinse and dry a can of chickpeas and scatter them on a baking sheet. Add some olive oil to the chickpeas, along with a little sea salt, and roast them on a baking sheet at 425 F for about 20 minutes or until crispy, shaking once or twice while cooking.

**If making this salad ahead to keep in the fridge, do not add the crispy chickpeas or candied nuts until ready to serve, as they’ll go soft after some time in the fridge.

• Prep Time: 30 minutes
• Cook Time: 15 minutes
• Category: salad
• Method: stovetop
• Cuisine: american

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