Sweet Corn & Quinoa with Honey Lemon Vinaigrette

Helga Glaesel de BlandingMay 15, 2012

This post is also available in / Esta entrada también está disponible en ESPAÑOL (SPANISH)

I’m always trying out new things in the kitchen, and I had been wanting to try Quinoa for some time. In fact, I’ve had a box of Quinoa sitting on my cabinet for a while now. As always, I want to keep my Foodies informed, so I did a little research on this pseudo cereal as it is called. Quinoa is closely related to species such as beets, spinach, and tumbleweeds. Tumbleweeds? makes your mouth water, doesn’t it?…

Quinoa was of great nutritional importance in pre-Columbian Andean civilizations, secondary only to the potato, and was followed in importance by maize. In contemporary times, this crop has become highly appreciated for its nutritional value, as its protein content is very high (18%). Nutritional evaluations of quinoa indicate that it is a source of complete protein.It is a good source of dietary fiber and phosphorus and is high in magnesium and iron. Quinoa is gluten-free and considered easy to digest. Because of all these characteristics, quinoa is being considered a possible crop in NASA’s Controlled Ecological Life Support System for long-duration human occupied spaceflights.

Impressive, right? Since it’s so good for you, I wanted to try a recipe that I could get my daughter to eat. I succeeded with this one, so I recommend you try it at home. As far as preparation is concerned, no big deal. It takes 15 minutes.

Helga

Sweet Corn & Quinoa with Honey Lemon Vinaigrette

Serves 3-4
Adapted from Iowa Girl Eats

Ingredients:
1 cup dry quinoa
2 cups water
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 scallions, sliced
2 ears sweet corn
salt & pepper

For the Honey Lemon Vinaigrette:
1 Tablespoon lemon zest
2 Tablespoons lemon juice
1 garlic clove, microplaned or finely minced
1 Tablespoon honey
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper

Procedure:

Rinse quinoa thoroughly under running water in a fine mesh sieve. Combine with water in a saucepan, bring to a boil, then place a lid on top and cook until the water is absorbed and the quinoa is tender, about 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, combine all the ingredients for the Honey Lemon Vinaigrette in a mason jar or small bowl, then shake or whisk to combine. Set aside.
Melt butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add green onions and sweet corn, season with salt & pepper, then saute until corn is tender, about 3 minutes. Add in cooked quinoa and Honey Lemon Vinaigrette, then toss thoroughly to combine. Taste, add more salt & pepper if necessary, then serve.

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