blood orange, quinoa, kale salad & blood orange quinoa parfait

A citrus recipe!!!  Wait, two citrus recipes!

What?  Too soon? 

I say, no way.  This was planned.  Pre-meditated.  And it’s meant to be eaten alongside your citrus sangria.  Well, the salad recipe not the parfait recipe.  Unless sangria with breakfast is your kind of thing.  I guess they’re kind of like mimosas, so knock yourself out.

blood orange, quinoa, kale salad with a simple vinaigrette // edible perspective

It’s like summer + winter have collided into one bowl and made a simple meal for you.  A simple meal you are going to make every day until you can no longer find blood oranges.  But don’t worry, you can just use regular oranges when that day comes.

blood orange, quinoa, kale salad with a simple vinaigrette // edible perspective

Bright + juicy like summer, citrusy + hearty like winter.

blood orange, quinoa, kale salad with a simple vinaigrette // edible perspective

I always cook a big batch of quinoa at the beginning of the week and more often then not it’s eaten pretty plain with only salt, pepper, and melted butter.  Tasty but boring.  Once in awhile I whip up an actual quinoa salad, fall head over heals, then wonder why the heck I’m eating it plain most days.  Anyone else?

In this recipe I’ve cooked + cooled quinoa, then combined it with lacinato kale, blood oranges, chickpeas, toasted pecans, and a light vinaigrette dressing.  It really is simple and so very tasty.

Don’t you want to just dive right in, spoon first?

blood orange, quinoa, kale salad with a simple vinaigrette // edible perspective

blood orange, quinoa, kale salad with a simple vinaigrette // edible perspective

Print this!

Blood Orange, Quinoa, Kale Salad with Orange Champagne Vinaigrette

gluten-free, vegan // yields 3-6 servings

for the salad:

• 1 cup uncooked quinoa, rinsed + drained
• 1/2 tablespoon coconut oil
• 2 cups water
• 4-5 blood oranges
• 1/2 head lacinato/dinosaur kale
• 1 cup chickpeas, rinsed + drained
• 1/2 cup toasted chopped pecans
• salt, to taste

for the dressing:

• 6 tablespoons hemp oil, or extra virgin olive oil
• 4 1/2 tablespoons champagne vinegar
• 2 tablespoons fresh blood orange juice
• 2 – 3 teaspoons honey, or maple syrup/agave
• 1 teaspoon blood orange zest
• salt, to taste

1. Place the coconut oil in a pot over medium heat and add the quinoa once hot.
2. Stir for 3-5 minutes until nutty and starting to turn golden brown.
3. Add the water and bring to a boil over med-high heat.
4. Once boiling, stir once, then cover with a tight fitting lid for 15-18 minutes until liquid has absorbed.  Do not stir while cooking.
5. Remove from the heat and let sit covered for 5-10 minutes. 
6. Fluff with a fork and spread on a large baking sheet then place in the fridge to chill.
7. While the quinoa is cooking whisk the oil, vinegar, orange juice, 2 teaspoons honey, zest, and a pinch of salt in a small bowl until fully combined.
8. Taste and add more salt and/or honey if desired.  Set aside.
9. Slice the kale leaves away from the stems and stack the leaves on top of one another, then slice the kale into thin ribbons and measure out 3 cups of loosely packed kale.
10. Remove the skin from 3-4 of the blood oranges and cut into small segments.
11. Combine the kale, chickpeas, and oranges in a large bowl with 1/2 of the dressing. 
12. Toss ingredients together and chill for 10 minutes.
13. Toss chilled quinoa into the bowl and lightly stir to combine, adding more dressing to your liking.
14. Top with a few sprinkles of salt, stir again, taste and make adjustments if needed.
15. Top each serving with toasted pecans and a wedge of blood orange.
16. Serve or store covered in the fridge without the pecans on top.

notes/subs: If you can’t find blood oranges, sub your favorite orange.  Satsumas would be my next pick and then cara-cara.  Apple cider vinegar can be subbed for the champagne vinegar.

blood orange, quinoa, kale salad with a simple vinaigrette // edible perspective

And to brighten up your weekday breakfasts, here’s another idea to use that weekly batch of quinoa.

Print this!

Blood Orange Quinoa Parfait

gluten-free // yields 1 serving

• 1/2 – 3/4 cup 2% Greek yogurt
• 1/3 – 1/2 cup pre-cooked quinoa, chilled
• 1 blood orange, peeled + sliced
• handful of toasted pecans
• squeeze of fresh blood orange juice
• drizzle of honey or maple syrup

1. Layer ingredients however you like.
2. Top with a squeeze of fresh blood orange juice and/or honey or maple syrup.
3. Best eaten right away.

This would be a great addition to a weekend brunch menu.  Easily made into a family style or mini-serving portions for a crowd.

Blood Orange Quinoa Parfait // edible perspective

Easily packed to-go if you’re in a rush! 

With a little honey drizzle on top.

Blood Orange Quinoa Parfait // edible perspective

Enjoy!

Ashley

red velvet pancakes

PANCAKES!

Red velvet pancakes to be exact.  Minus the whole red food dye thing.

If you wondered what I was going to do with my leftover beets from the beet stamps, well, this is it.  Pancakes.  Batch after batch of pancakes.

You know I can’t eat straight up beets.  Steamed, roasted, whatever.  No thanks.  Even the smell while they were steaming…blegh!

But hidden in these pancakes?  No problem!  The point was not to hide vegetables in something delicious.  It was purely to turn them a pretty pinkish-red hue.

A little late for Valentine’s Day, but whatever.

We’ll call these, Everyday Love Cakes.  No special “holiday” required.

I’m sure there are a million other uses for beet puree.  You can experiment and let me know.  I think I’ll stick to adding them in small doses to baked goods so they go undetected.

The color was quite vivid as they cooked, but once flipped they had a brown-orange coloring marbled with the pink-red.

Tie-dye pancakes? 

With a light hint of cocoa, and a soft-cakey texture, these pancakes get the job done.  You will never in a million years guess they are gluten-free.

And how could I make these beauteous pancakes and cover them with only maple syrup??

A little something extra special for you here…

Cocoa-maple-coconut syrup anyone?

Mmmm-hmm.

Print this!

Red Velvet Pancakes

gluten-free + dairy free // yields 8, 5-inch pancakes

• 1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons gluten-free oat flour
• 1/4 cup almond meal
• 1/4 cup sweet rice flour
• 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk
• 3 1/2 tablespoons beet puree
• 3 tablespoons pure maple syrup
• 2 tablespoons unsweetened applesauce
• 1 tablespoon oil
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• unrefined coconut oil [or other] for the pan

1. Mix the dry ingredients together in a large bowl.
2. Whisk the wet ingredients together in another bowl until fully combined.
3. Add the wet to the dry and stir with a large spoon until just combined.
4. Let the batter sit for 10 minutes without disturbing.
5. Heat a griddle or large pan over medium and grease well.
6. Scoop approximately 1/4 cup scoops of batter in the pan and swirl around with a spatula or spoon to about 5” wide.  For thinner pancakes, add 1-2 tablespoons more milk to the batter and gently stir until just incorporated.
7. Let cook 2-3 minutes until you see the top filled with bubbles.  Then flip and cook another 1-3 minutes until golden brown.  Avoid overcrowding the pan and adjust heat as needed so the pancakes are fully cooked.
8. Serve hot.  Pancakes can be cooled, wrapped tightly, and refrigerated for 2-3 days.

tips/notes: Melted coconut oil can be used as the oil in these, just make sure all other wet ingredients are at room temp so the coconut oil does not solidify.  There is no substitute for sweet rice flour. 

Chocolate Coconut Maple Syrup

• 3 tablespoons pure maple syrup, warmed
• 1 tablespoon unrefined coconut oil, melted
• 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder

1. Whisk together until fully combined.  Will thicken as it cools.

Beet Puree

• 1 dark red large beet
• 1-2 tablespoons unsweetened almond milk
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice

1. Wash and cut ends off the beet.
2. Cut or peel the skin from the beet.
3. Cube the beet and steam for about 18-22min until fork tender.  You can also roast the cubed beet in the oven wrapped in foil with a little oil at 375* until tender.
4. Rinse with cold water and place in a blender, food processor, or use an immersion blender.
5. Combine with the milk and lemon juice and puree until the consistency of applesauce is reached.  Add more milk if needed.  With only 1 beet it may be hard to blend in a blender, so if using a blender I suggest roasting 2 beets and doubling the milk/lemon juice.
6. Let cool fully and store covered in the fridge for 5-7 days.

We all need a little everyday love, don’t you think?

Especially on Monday.

Ashley