After eating a delicious, healthy meal do you ever immediately have a little voice asking for something sweet? I do! Give in… but be smart about it. I find ‘playing with my food’ – ahem, testing recipes – helps me to create meals that find the perfect balance keeping the healthy factor and energy levels high while also satiating my sweet tooth. The always nutritious kale and quinoa salad pairs nicely with the rich sun-dried tomatoes and olive oil. The sweet watermelon lemonade is the perfect accompaniment or dessert, offering a brilliant pink color and a tart, sweet taste you can’t find in a can or powder blend lemonade. And if you want your quinoa and watermelon in one dish, there’s a recipe for that, too.
P.S. MUCH love to all of you for the overwhelming response on Facebook.
P.P.S. These recipes are both veggie and vegan, meeting my 11×30 requirements!
WATERMELON LEMONADE
- 5 lemons
- 1/2 a 10-12 pound watermelon
DIRECTIONS
- Carefully chop the watermelon in half; wrap one-half and store in the refrigerator.
- Begin to quarter the half you sliced. Work away the rind. Chop the watermelon into pieces that will fit into your juicer.
- Run the watermelon through the juicer. When finished, place into a pitcher that can be sealed airtight.
- Begin to juice the lemons. Place 5 lemons through, whole.
- Combine the watermelon and lemon juice. Enjoy!
KALE, SUN-DRIED TOMATOES & QUINOA SALAD
- 1 bunch of kale of your choice
- 2 and 1/2 cups of cooked quinoa
- 8.5 jar oz of sun-dried tomatoes or 3 oz dried package
- 1 TBSP of olive oil
- 2 TBSP of citrus juice of choice (lemon or orange)
- 2 TBSP of apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 of a 15 oz can of garbanzo beans
DIRECTIONS
- Cook your quinoa according to directions. While it cooks, you can prep everything else for the dish. *Tip: I make a big batch (~ 6 cups) of quinoa at the beginning of the week and use it for recipes all week.
- Wash the kale. Begin to tear it away from the rib and into bite-sized pieces, placing it into the bowl you will be serving in.
- Marinate and massage the kale. Add the oil, citrus juice and vinegar to the kale. Work it in with your hands, gently ‘massaging’ the kale for 2-3 minutes (this helps to break it down some, taking away the toughness and bitter taste). If you’re making this in advance, you can allow the kale to marinate overnight if you like.
- Layer in the sun-dried tomatoes and garbanzo beans.
- Add the quinoa, warm or cold; combine all ingredients.
- Optional: add a little more olive oil if you like.
| « Previous Post | Next Post » |
So excited to be the 1st one to taste test this with you. This salad was seriously delish! Thanks for posting the recipe:)
Thank you for being such a good sport and trying my crazy meals! P.S. I posted a cute picture of you in the Shareen Vintage post from Sunday. xx!
I can’t wait to try watermelon lemonade! Why didn’t I think of that? Sounds delicious!
I am SO making both these recipes! :) Thanks for sharing.
Let me know what you think and if you think of any ways to make it better!