Quinoa, Fruit and Nut Salad - French Fridays with Dorie

This week, the French Fridays with Dorie group made Quinoa, Fruit and Nut Salad from Dorie Greenspan's cookbook Around my French Table. Sure, I'm a day late in posting, but I did make and eat it on Friday! :)

I've eaten quinoa in the past, but never cooked with the ancient super grain. To tell the truth, I'm having some issues with quinoa...because I feel I should buy one box and send one box back to Bolivia. Did you hear that in Bolivia, where they've been eating quinoa for a zillion years, locals are being priced out of the market? Because of the worldwide demand for quinoa, the price of quinoa has increased and many poor Bolivians cannot afford quinoa. And now they are eating cheap, less nutritious processed foods, rice and noodles. Oy vey. (Articles from: NYTimes "Quinoa’s Global Success Creates Quandary at Home" 3/19/2011, The Week, NPR)

This salad is very adaptable. I used dried cranberries, golden raisins, almonds, and sunflower seeds. My dressing included pink grapefruit, Meyer lemon juice, olive oil, and fresh ginger. I didn't have any fresh herbs around, so I chiffonade lettuce instead. I skipped the dollop of yogurt.


Be sure to check out my fellow French Fridays with Dorie members and see their creations!

Please note: French Fridays with Dorie will not be posting recipes. Please support Dorie and purchase the book or find it at your library.