Snig's quinoa salad

This salad is an attempt to recreate a dish Him Indoors (my inimitable hubby) ordered in the Loire Valley in France. There, it was called a "Quinoa Tabbouleh". However, since it doesn't use bulgur wheat or couscous and has no parsley in it, it isn't a true Tabbouleh, which is why I won't use the name. 

I have used a combination of red and white quinoa here, because the small amount of red gives a nuttiness and bite which makes the dish a little bit more interesting. Don't overcook the white quinoa or it will become too soft. 

There's a lot of chopping to be done to prepare for this salad, for which I apologise. But the courgette goes in raw, so it has to be cut up small. Raw chunks of courgette wouldn't taste as good. 

This dish could be served as a vegetarian (vegan) meal-in-a-bowl salad. Or you could put the dressing in a little jar and take the salad to work, dressing at the last minute. Or, as we did, you could have it as an accompaniment to steamed king prawns with a small side dish of salad leaf. 

Snig's Quinoa Salad

(Serves 2-3)

Ingredients:

Salad:

80g white quinoa

1tbsp Red quinoa

1/4 Cucumber, peeled, deseeded and chopped into 5mm dice

1/2 Courgette, peeled and chopped into 5mm dice

1/2 Sweetcorn, niblets sheared from the cob

1/4 mug frozen petit pois

1/3 mug frozen edemame beans (without pods)

5 cherry tomatoes (or baby plum tomatoes), deseeded and chopped into 5mm dice

1 tbsp finely chopped fresh Coriander leaf (optional)

Dressing: 

3 tbsp Olive oil

1 tbsp White wine vinegar

Salt (freshly ground sea salt)

Pepper (freshly ground black pepper)

1 teaspoon Mustard

Method:

1. Prepare the chopped vegetables as set out above and set aside. 
2. Rinse the uncooked, dried quinoa to wash it. 
3. Put in a saucepan with ample unsalted water to more than cover it, bring to the boil, then simmer for 12-13 minutes. When the little spirals begin come out of the white quinoa seeds, you know they are done. 
4. Drain using a sieve, rinse with cold water to stop the cooking process. Drain again, leaving the quinoa hanging in the sieve to allow all excess water to drain away.
5. Put a small saucepan on the hob, filled with water. Bring to the boil. Then add the corn, setting a timer for 6-7 minutes. When there are 3 minutes left, add the Edamame. When there is 1 minute left, add the Petit pois. 
6. Drain, rinse with cold water to stop the vegetables cooking. Drain again. If there is excess water, give it a spin in a salad spinner. 
7. Put the cooked vegetables in a non-metallic bowl. Add the tomatoes and optional coriander and mix well. Add the quinoa and mix well. 
8. Whisk up the dressing ingredients in a mug, seasoning to taste. 
9. Dress the salad and mix thoroughly only when you are ready to serve up.
10. Serve up and eat immediately before the dressing "burns" the coriander. 

August 2017 Favourites List

This month’s pictures are from 78 Derngate, Northampton. It is a fascinating house with remarkable architectural and artistic importance. Built in around 1815-1820, it was a typical terraced house of its day until its owner WJ Bassett-Lowke (a model maker) decided to get the renowned architect Charles Rennie Macintosh to remodel the house and design the interiors. It was to be Macintosh’s last commission as an architect, before he devoted himself to painting in his later years. It is also his only refurbishment project and the only house he worked on outside of his beloved Scotland.

Rennie Macintosh’s creativity reveals itself in the bold colour scheme in the hallway-lounge; imposing black with the bright yellow contrast. A striking room which would have been nothing short of revolutionary in 1917. In fact, it was so bold, Mrs Bassett-Lowke utterly disliked it! Her dislike was strong enough that she asked him to redesign with a lighter colour scheme years later. 

Macintosh must have liked Mrs Bassett-Lowke a great deal, toning down his extreme vision for the house for the kitchen and living room for her sake. Whilst elements of his design signature are apparent in the furniture, the overall feel is more typical of the time. The guest bedroom, on the other hand, displays uncompromising lines, the ceiling almost dizzying to the viewer. 

I hope you feel like you’re nosing around the house from these pictures. The house is celebrating its Centenary this year. 100 years of astonishing design from one of Britain’s greatest architects.  

Recipes:

Courgettes and peas, quintessentially Summer vegetables, in a light salad with the big cooking trend, "quick pickling": http://www.olivemagazine.com/recipes/meat-and-poultry/quick-pickled-courgette-ham-hock-pea-and-goats-cheese-salad/

 

What's your favourite steak sauce? For me, it is peppercorn sauce. But this Stilton sauce from Helen Best-Shaw might change my mind! https://fussfreeflavours.com/stilton-steak-sauce/

Rachel Roddy's baked aubergine with goat's cheese and herbs. A taste of Summer! https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2017/aug/08/baked-aubergine-herbs-goats-cheese-recipe-rachel-roddy

 

Porcini mushroom risotto, a meat free dish for even the most confirmed carnivore:  http://www.thepasadenachef.com/2017/01/risotto-alla-funghi-porcini.html

 

If you ever find those packs of frozen Swedish meatballs, here's a sauce recipe which compliments them perfectly. http://allrecipes.com/recipe/218894/easy-swedish-meatball-sauce/

 

After mentioning Scandi meatballs online, my former student Will sent me this recipe for Danish meatballs: http://nordicfoodliving.com/danish-pork-meatballs-frikadeller/

The "Mustard Seed Cook" Katherine Garner shares three salad dressing recipes, and advises how you can go recipe-free: https://withloveandaprayer.wordpress.com/2017/08/03/3-delicious-salad-dressings/

 

Blending different minced meats makes your meatballs achieve a better balance of taste and texture. It's a handy little cooking tip used to good effect in this recipe: http://www.olivemagazine.com/recipes/family/fennel-and-herb-meatball-rigatoni/

Articles/Know How:

Brits are beginning to take Sake to their hearts. Meet the Peckham couple making their own London version of the iconic Japanese drink: https://www.japantimes.co.jp/life/2017/08/12/food/britains-appetite-sake-showing-signs-growth/#.WZBkTTPTXqA

 

The long read - why we fell for clean eating. A well researched, well considered examination on the food fad, which although debunked, refuses to die. Enjoy avocados, by all means. But please, eat a balanced diet! https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2017/aug/11/why-we-fell-for-clean-eating

 

Love travel and food? Some City break ideas for you from a foodie perspective: https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/howto/guide/six-city-breaks

 

 

What you might have missed at Snig's Kitchen:

New recipe blog post, Puy lentil, lardon and poached egg salad: http://snigskitchen.blogspot.co.uk/2017/08/puy-lentil-lardon-and-poached-egg-salad.html

My other writing:

My piece on the Supreme Court's quashing of the Employment Tribunal fees regime "Without access to justice, the law is a dead letter". Non-paywall, non-subscription version - free to all! https://www.city.ac.uk/news/2017/august/without-access-to-justice,-the-law-is-a-dead-letter

 

My latest piece of legal writing. Without access to justice, the law is a dead letter. My analysis of the Supreme Court decision quashing unlawful employment tribunal fees. https://www.solicitorsjournal.com/feature/201707/without-access-justice-law-dead-letter

 

TV:

The Handmaid’s Tale

Se Quien Eres (I Know Who You Are)

Please note: as with every monthly Favourites List, all of these items have been selected by me simply because I love them. I do not receive any money, benefits in kind or other incentive for posting these links or recommendations.