Name: Quinoa Salad with Apple and Chickpeas
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 25 min
Ingredients: 1 cup quinoa; 2 cups water; 1/2 cup sliced almonds (toasted); 1 14 ounce can chickpeas (garbanzo beans),; 1 large Gala apple (cored and chopped); 3 tablespoons Gorgzonzola cheese; 2 green onion (thinly sliced (green & white parts)); 1/3 cup apple cider or apple juice; 3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar; 2 tablespoons olive oil; 1 teaspoon agave nectar ( or honey); 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

I'm going to pretend that anytime I make vegetarian recipes it is done with purely charitable intentions. Don't get me wrong, I wholeheartedly support the idea behind Meatless Monday...cutting out the meat once per week to improve both our health and the health of the planet. However, if I start to pull out the quinoa and chickpeas for dinner, it likely means that I forgot to defrost some chicken or replenish our tilapia supply. Honorable, huh?

With an abundance of crisp, ripe apples at the markets and leftover Gorgonzola cheese in the fridge (from my Gorgonzola Cheese Cups with Pear & Hazelnut Salad), this salad came together with little effort.

The sweet and salty flavors are punctuated by a light vinaigrette made of apple cider, a little olive oil, apple cider vinegar & a pinch of salt. Toss everything together in a bowl, along with some toasted slivered almonds and chopped green onions. Dinner is served. A meatless one, at that.

The recipe:

The salad:
In a fine-mesh strainer, rinse the quinoa well and drain.

In a medium pot, combine the quinoa and water. Bring to a boil, then cover and turn heat to low. Cook until all the water is absorbed, about 20 minutes. Remove from the heat, fluff the quinoa and transfer to a cookie sheet, spreading the quinoa in a thin layer, to cool.

In a large bowl, mix together the cooled quinoa, almonds, chickpeas, apple, Gorgonzola cheese and green onions.

The vinaigrette:
Whisk together white apple cider, apple cider vinegar, olive oil, agave nectar and salt.

Pour the dressing over the quinoa salad and toss to coat. Serve over a bed of spinach or arugula, if desired.

Other quinoa recipes:

Cookin' Canuck's Salad Cups with Quinoa, Shrimp, Avocado & Lemon Dressing
Cookin' Canuck's Vegetarian Stew with Quinoa, Butternut Squash & Coconut Milk
Bev Cooks' Kidney Bean & Quinoa Soft Tacos
Ambitious Kitchen's Kale, Edamame & Quinoa Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette

Printable Recipe

Want to save this recipe?

Enter your email below & we'll send it straight to your inbox. Plus you’ll get great new recipes from us every week!

Quinoa Salad with Apple and Chickpeas

Packed with protein-rich chickpeas and fall flavors, this easy quinoa salad can stand in as a meatless entree on any night.

5 from 1 vote

Print Pin Rate

Course: Entrees, Salads

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Vegetarian

Prep Time: 5

Cook Time: 20

Total Time: 25

Servings: Servings

Calories: 566kcal

Author: Dara Michalski | Cookin' Canuck

Ingredients

The Salad:

1 cup quinoa
2 cups water
½ cup sliced almonds toasted
1 14 ounce can chickpeas (garbanzo beans), (I prefer Bush's Beans
1 large Gala apple cored and chopped
3 tablespoons Gorgzonzola cheese
2 green onion thinly sliced (green & white parts)

The Vinaigrette:

⅓ cup apple cider or apple juice
3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon agave nectar or honey
¼ teaspoon kosher salt

Instructions

The Salad:

In a fine-mesh strainer, rinse quinoa well and drain.
In a medium pot, combine quinoa and water. Bring to a boil, then cover and turn heat to low. Cook until all the water is absorbed, about 20 minutes. Remove from the heat, fluff the quinoa and transfer to a cookie sheet, spreading the quinoa in a thin layer, to cool.
In a large bowl, mix together cooled quinoa, almonds, chickpeas, apple, Gorgonzola cheese and green onions.

The Vinaigrette:

Whisk together white apple cider, apple cider vinegar, olive oil, agave nectar and salt.
Pour the dressing over the quinoa salad and toss to coat. Serve.

Nutrition

Tried this recipe?If you make this recipe, I'd love to see it on Instagram! Just use the hashtag #COOKINCANUCK and I'll be sure to find it.

Disclosure: I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for me to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

Comments

5 from 1 vote (1 rating without comment)