Caprese (Without the Cheese) Quinoa Salad
Serves 4-5 • Total Time: 15 minutes • FODMAP rating: high
This salad is a great one to use for lunches for the week. It can also be made into one huge salad to bring to an event. Quinoa is a gluten-free whole grain that provides 8 grams of protein and 5 grams of fiber in just one cup!
Ingredients
2 (15 oz) cans chickpeas or garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
1 large container or 2 small bags or 10 cups spring salad mix
1 cup uncooked or 2-3 cups cooked quinoa
1 bell pepper
2-3 cups cherry tomatoes
fresh basil leaves
1 large cucumber
¼-⅓ cup sliced almonds
Balsamic Dressing
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 ½ teaspoon dijon mustard
juice of a ½ of a lemon
½ cup plus 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
½ cup aquafaba* or water
⅓ cup cashews, preferably soaked
pinch of fresh basil leaves
1 teaspoon sweetener*
salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
Soak cashews as needed.
Cook the quinoa according to the directions on the package.
Place all the dressing ingredients in a blender, and blend until smooth. Divide by 4-5.
Layer the salad in a jar in this order: ½ cup cherry tomatoes, ½ cup quinoa, ¼ of a chopped bell pepper, pinch of basil leaves, ⅓ cup of chickpeas, chopped cucumbers, and 1-2 cups spring salad mix.
When ready to eat, dump the salad onto a plate.
Drizzle the dressing over the salad and add sliced almonds.
*Don’t forget to preload on vegetables before you eat!
*Aquafaba is the liquid from canned white beans
*Sweetener can be any granulated sugar or liquid sweetener like maple syrup or honey
*Nut-Free: Swap out nuts for seeds like pumpkin, hemp or sunflower seeds. Use sunflower seeds in place of cashews and soak as needed.
*FODMAP Swaps: Keep chickpeas portions to under ¼ cup and increase as tolerated; use roma tomatoes or start with 3 per portion and increase as tolerated; use water instead of aquafaba; avoid coconut, date sugar or honey
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