Quinoa salad, quick and delicious!

I categorized this recipe under quick, healthy, side dishes, but that may be a limited description. It could also be filed under vegetarian/vegan and main dishes. These are my favorite kinds of meals, healthy, tasty, and a little out of the ordinary. I have no excuse for not making it more often considering what a simple dish this is to make for such a great payoff. It's not as cheap as the drive-thru dollar menu, but with this, you could feed four on what you might spend on one dinner at Chili's. It's on the high side of reasonable.

Quinoa (pronounced: kēnwä) is a seed from the grain family. It comes in red and white, organic and non, it is naturally gluten-free and high in protein. If you've not had quinoa before, it's a light, delicate grain. You might compare it to a small barley or couscous.

Now quinoa itself can be expensive if bought in bulk. It also requires soaking and cooking, like rice. That's why I love a bag of frozen, pre-made quinoa. It comes in the natural foods section at my store. It's usually around $2.50. If I were having a big party, I would buy the bulk, uncooked version.

I have made this several times before, sometimes for very nice dinners, at other times just thrown together for a quick lunch. I've used blackberries, raspberries, and blueberries. Although the berries are wonderful, I think the seedless, red grape, cut in half are my favorite. The bag of frozen quinoa, all ready to use makes this recipe as simple as gathering some nuts and berries. A wild bear could do this blindfolded.