Quinoa salad and it’s raining shoes, hallelujah!
Humidity is rising – barometre‘s getting low
According to all sources, the street’s the place to go
‘Cause tonight for the first time
Just about half-past two
For the first time in history
It’s gonna start raining shoes.
Like most 12-year-olds, Léo is partial to sleeping in the morning, especially during the holidays. Unfortunately for him, the morning is the time when the hens are at their busiest and noisiest and they seem to enjoy being particularly vocal on the terrace right under his bedroom window. This morning I was surprised to find the terrace void of hens, but brimming with a random assortment of shoes. When Léo finally emerged, I asked him if he knew anything about the shower of shoes. Looking scarily thunderous, and with a hen-like flap of his forearms he screeched: ‘CUUAAAAA cua cua cua’. So the shoe-laden terrace is obviously Léo’s take on the concept of shoeing away the hens.
Quinoa is an ancient grain, reputed to have given the Aztecs enormous strength. It is very nutrient-dense, containing more protein than any other grain. It is also extremely rich in vitamins and minerals and has significant anti-inflammatory properties. It makes a marvellous alternative to rice.
Ingredients (serves 4)
250g quinoa, cooked and cooled
100g peas, cooked ‘al dente’ and cooled
200g chickpeas, cooked and cooled
50g cashew nuts, roughly chopped
1 shallot, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
5 fresh mint leaves
Sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
3 tablespoons olive oil
Juice of half a lemon
Mix all the ingredients together in a medium-size bowl, adding the mint leaves, seasoning and olive oil and lemon last. Mix well and serve slightly chilled!
13 Comments
apuginthekitchen
LOL, I guess Leo’s shoe shower worked, the hens took their vocal assault elsewhere. Lovely healthy salad.
The Healthy Epicurean
Thank you! Bizarrely enough it does seem to have worked because they haven’t been back since, which is so nice and peaceful! Go Léo! 😉 Hugo is wondering whether Nando has his wheels yet?
apuginthekitchen
Well nandos wheels did not work for him. He is too frail and his posture possibly because he had a small strike makes it to hard for him to pull himself in the chair he literally goes over head first like a somersault. So disappointing and please thank Hugo
The Healthy Epicurean
Oh no! How disappointing. Hugo will be sad for him. 🙁
Darya
Haha ! Elle m’a bien fait rire l’histoire de Léo et de la pluie de chaussures. J’aime également beaucoup la salade, idéale pour se caler malgré la chaleur de l’été.
The Healthy Epicurean
La pluie de chaussures a l’air d’avoir été efficace en tout cas – elles viennent beaucoup moins qu’avant!. Et tu as raison – la salade cale bien… 🙂
KJ
It defines one’s age, when certain phrases bring back a period of living on the beach in So Cal, where there were no chickens and, oddly enough, very few shoes, although there were other sorts reigning on the sand. In South Laguna Beach, that is one song that was a constant, as soon as it hit, in 1983. It seemed appropriate, somehow.
This salad looks like a good replacement for the everyday variety. Lettuce doesn’t always agree with me, for some reason.
The Healthy Epicurean
I can quite see that this song would be evocative. Songs always bring back a place and time… This salad is easy and satisfying – I’m sure it would agree with you. 🙂
kellie anderson
Chickens – hens – are smarter than most people realise. Weirdly, I was trying to convince friends of this just yesterday! We had hens for years but they were “foxed” and we haven’t the heart to replace them just yet. I love how satisfyingly protein-filled is this salad. Really lovely xx
The Healthy Epicurean
Well ours are obviously smart enough to avoid any area where it rains shoes 😉
Lynz Real Cooking
Funny story!!! I will have to try this I have not been successful in using Quinoa in a recipe, didn’t taste good! But this sounds good!
The Healthy Epicurean
Thanks! I hope you enjoy it as much as we did if you do try it. 🙂
Lynz Real Cooking
I have a list of things to try so I will get to it! Thanks