This Quinoa Salad with Spinach Grapefruit and Avocado is loaded with vitamin C, A, Potassium and good heart-healthy fats!!
Quinoa Salad with Spinach Grapefruit & Avocado
Quinoa Salad with Spinach Grapefruit & AvocadoMore easy quinoa salad recipes I love are Protein Egg and Quinoa Salad Jars (perfect for on-the-go!), Quinoa Tabbouleh (from The Skinnytaste Cookbook), and Quinoa Chickpea Avocado Salad.
There is something wonderful to me about biting into a salad with grapefruit. It’s juicy and refreshing and lends a sort of bitter-sweetness to each bite. If you are not a fan of grapefruit this is also great with oranges or you could even do a combination.
Let’s talk about quinoa pronounced (KEEN-wah).
It surprises me how many people have never even heard of quinoa. Quinoa is an amino acid-rich (protein) seed from South America with a slight nutty, earthy taste. It’s also gluten-free and a great way to add protein to vegetarian diets.
I love using it in soups, in place of rice, but it’s also wonderful in salads. It comes in a variety of colors such as orange, pink, red, or black. I found this tri-color variety in Trader Joe’s, use whatever variety you wish.
Quinoa Salad with Spinach Grapefruit & Avocado
Ingredients
- 4 oz baby spinach
- 2 ruby red grapefruits, peeled and fruit separated, reserving 3 slices
- 1 haas avocados, diced
- 1 cup cooked quinoa, 1/3 cup dry
For the Citrus Vinaigrette:
- 1 1/2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 1/2 tbsp champagne vinegar
- 2 tbsp chopped shallots
- salt and pepper to taste
- grapefruit juice from 3 reserved slices of grapefruit
Instructions
- Rinse quinoa well under cold water and cook according to package directions.
- Drain and let it cool.
- Peel the skin and white membrane off the grapefruit and separate the pieces.
- Reserve three grapefruit slices for the vinaigrette and squeeze the juice; set aside.
- Cut up the remaining grapefruit into small pieces for the salad.
- In a medium bowl whisk the olive oil, grapefruit juice (from 3 slices of grapefruit), vinegar, chopped shallots, salt and pepper.
- In a large bowl toss spinach, quinoa, avocado, grapefruit and vinaigrette.
- Divide between four plates.
