Accidentally Vegan: Quinoa Salad with Zucchini, Mint, and Pistachios

I believe I may have already blogged about the Meatless Mondays initiative, but as it's been such a long time since I've updated to begin with... Meatless Monday is a campaign with many celebrity contributors (Mario Batalli, Paul McCartney, to name a couple - I even have the McCartney family Meat-free Monday cookbook), as well as those in the health community, targeted to help reduce the amount of meat the average family consumes with the goal of bettering their personal health and the health of the environment. More often than not, I tend to forget Meatless Monday and treat it like a normal day. While putting together our grocery list this morning, I came across a lovely salad recipe from September's issue of Martha Stewart Living. Now, I'm not the biggest fan of Martha, I find much of her magazine to be rather pretentious and WAY out of my league, but... her recipes are hands-down part of my favorites. She has a great style of writing her recipes (or at least her editors have an excellent way of editing them): they're easy, approachable, and very clear. Her recipes rank among Giada DeLaurentiis, Ina Garten, and the folks at America's Test Kitchen/Cooks' Illustrated for the most well-written recipes. And you know these recipes were tested to ensure they're correct, too, something I feel many cookbook authors and chefs don't do nearly enough. Anyway, I thought that I might keep the menu of meals this week rather light. Neither of us ate very consciously this weekend and I figure a nice salad would help turn that around.

I love quinoa and I love finding new ways to cook and prepare it. While there is some controversy about quinoa and the effect the explosion of first-world demand for quinoa has had on the indigenous people who primarily live off of it, I do love the fact that it's a fully balanced protein and can be a tasty stand-in for most starches, like rice, potatoes, and pasta. I also love zucchini and I don't think I cook nearly enough with it. It's such a versatile little gourd. You can bake it, stuff it, sauté it, roast it, grill it! With two of my favorite ingredients in the forefront, how could this salad go wrong? It didn't, to be quite honest. It was quick to make and incredibly flavorful. The sautéed zucchini provided a lovely sweetness next to the savory quinoa, then there was a punch of lemon from the zest and juice and the brightness of the mint. The pistachios add a lovely crunchy texture and toasted flavor note. A sharpness from the lightly sautéed garlic and the scallions made for a really great flavored salad. The great thing, too, is that it was filling, unlike other lettuce-based salads, which can leave you feeling more bloated than satisfied. Both Marshall and I loved it and I know I'll make it again.

A few things I would think to adjust for next time:

• Cut the amount of quinoa to 3/4 of a cup instead of a full cup.
• Increase the amount of zucchini by a full cup. I love having more green on my plate, plus I think the zucchini got a little lost among the quinoa.
• Skip trying to find/use roasted and salted pistachios. Get the shelled raw pistachios and toast them in a dry pan until lightly browned. You honestly won't miss the salt and I think you might end up with an even better flavor.
• Smash and mince the garlic, instead of slicing it. Honestly, I don't have the knife skills to thinly slice garlic and I'm not digging out the mandolin to slice a clove (or in my case 2 cloves) of garlic. If you choose to smash and mince, be super careful not to overcook the garlic in the pan. You merely want to warm it through and cut the rawness, you definitely don't want to brown it. 

A quick note about Martha's measurement "style": I'm not entirely sure where she gets her "medium" zucchinis that yield 2-1/2 cups thinly sliced. I also don't know where she gets her scallions where 3 of them sliced equals 1/2 Cup. Lastly, I think she gets her lemons from the magical lemon tree in her personal grove, because I've never been able to get 3 Tablespoons of juice from a single one! I ended up slicing 3 small-to-medium zucchinis, 6 rather skinny scallions, and the juice from 2 small lemons. My suggestion is to buy a little extra and if you end up with too much, I'm sure you'll find a use for your leftovers (might I suggest garnishing that gin and tonic with a lemon slice?).

I totally recommend this salad for those warm summer nights when you don't have much time to cook and the kitchen is too hot for much else. Plus - you could always grill your zucchini, instead of sautéing it!

Bon appetit!

Quinoa Salad with Zucchini, Mint, and Pistachios

Serves 4

1 Cup quinoa, rinsed well

1-1/2 Cups water

Kosher Salt and Freshly Ground Black Pepper

2 Tablespoons of Extra-Virgin Olive Oil

1 Medium Zucchini (see note above), thinly sliced (about 2-1/2 Cups)

1 Clove Garlic, thinly sliced

3 Scallions (see note above), thinly sliced (about 1/2 Cup)

1/4 Cup Roasted Salted Pistachios, chopped

Zest and Juice of 1 Lemon (about 3 Tablespoons of juice, see note above)

1/2 Cup (packed) Fresh Mint, chopped

1. Place quinoa and water in a small sauce pan and season with a pinch of salt. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and cover. Simmer until tender and water is absorbed, about 16 minutes. Transfer to a large (serving) bowl and set aside.

2. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add zucchini; cook, stirring occasionally, until tender and golden, about 7 minutes. Add garlic; cook until fragrant (do not let brown), about 30 seconds. season with salt and pepper and add to quinoa.

3. Stir in scallions, pistachios, lemon zest and juice, and mint. Season with salt and pepper, to taste, and serve immediately.

"Quinoa Salad with Zucchini, Mint, and Pistachios." Martha Stewart Living, September 2013: p. 65.