Morning! I’m still in Chapel Hill studying my butt off, but I have a feeling you’re getting tired of reading about our exercise-eat-study-repeat schedule so I thought I would mix it up today with a simple lunch or dinner idea! It’s as easy as can be: salad + veggies + quinoa + lentils = yum.
The trick to this salad is these precooked lentils from Trader Joe’s! So easy and awesome. And so good I literally eat them straight from the package sometimes. 🙂
The other trick is precooked quinoa. I like making a big batch of it early in the week and sticking it plain in the fridge so I have it to add to random meals later on! I really love quinoa on top of salads.
For the base of the salad, I used this baby kale from Whole Foods – love this stuff. Not bitter at all!
To assemble the salad, just put some of the baby kale/greens on a plate, then add 1/2 cup of cooked quinoa, 1/2 cup of cooked lentils, and whatever veggies you like. I added peppers and also some avocado for healthy fat.
For the dressing, I made my standard mix of balsamic vinegar + hemp oil (great source of omega fatty acids! olive oil is fine if you don’t have hemp oil, though) + dijon mustard + lemon juice (yes, totally using bottled lemon juice – don’t judge). It’s about 2 parts oil, 1 part balsamic, 1 part dijon mustard, and a hearty squeeze of lemon juice. I never measure it – just taste as you go!
Top with a little salt and cracked pepper and lunch is served! Fiber (veggies + lentils), healthy fats (oil + avocado), veggie nutrient power, and protein (lentils + quinoa). Perfect! This would also be great with a little feta or goat cheese if you want – I just didn’t have any on hand.
Give it a try yourself this week!
What fun products/ingredients have you tried at the grocery store lately?
