September was a much better month for me, as I really started running again and I started paying better attention to what I put in my mouth. I signed up for a 10K that’s on October 11 and I am contemplating a half in January. I’m so happy to be back at it and most of all, enjoying it!
Now that my 5K project is done, I feel like I have a little breathing room. I have celebrated this week by being good to my body. This salad is one of the ways I am treating myself.
It’s chock full of raw, fresh veggies and topped with crunchy red quinoa. The whole salad is tossed in homemade vinaigrette.
I have two secret weapons that I employed to make this salad. The first is a julienne peeler that cuts matchstick ribbons of zucchini. I love using it to make zucchini noodles. There are lot of different contraptions out there that will cut your veggies into noodles, but this one has worked well for me. It’s cheap, too!
I just used it, so it still has zucchini bits on it. My second secret weapon is my Kolder Salad Dressing Bottle.
This bottle helps me whip up a yummy vinaigrette. It has fill lines for liquids and recipes listed right on the bottle for NINE different dressings. NINE! It is seriously one of my favorite kitchen tools.
Truthfully, I have only tried two of the recipes, the Balsamic Vinaigrette and the basic Vinaigrette. But the basic Vinaigrette is my favorite. I don’t even buy pre-made dressings anymore unless we are are having a party or someone in my family requests something different.
I use this vinaigrette on green salads, pasta salads, potato salad and as a marinade for chicken. It’s very tasty and very versatile. I can’t say enough about this dressing or the bottle that I use to measure it out. But for you, I measured out the recipe, so you can make it without the bottle for now. You will want to put all of the ingredients in a glass jar with a tight fitting lid. Then you can shake it up really well.
Here’s the recipe for this yummy salad. Enjoy!
Zucchini Noodle and Quinoa Salad
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup olive oil
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1/8 cup lemon juice
- 1/4 tsp paprika
- 1/2 tsp mustard or mustard powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1 clove of garlic minced or pressed
- 2 small zucchini
- 1-2 cups chopped broccoli
- 1/2 red or yellow Bell pepper chopped
- Red onion thinly sliced
- 2 cups of Spring mix lettuce
- 1 cup of cooked and cooled quinoa
- Chopped peanuts
Instructions
- Add first eight ingredients to a glass jar with a tight lid. Shake to mix. Set aside.
- Using a julienne peeler or some other spiralizer device, cut the zucchini lengthwise into matchstick ribbons. In a large bowl, mix the zucchini noodles, broccoli, pepper, onion, and Spring mix. Add quinoa. Drizzle with dressing, add salt and pepper to taste and toss the salad to distribute dressing.
- Divide salad between 2 bowls. Top with chopped peanuts.
