Ingredients:

  • 1/4 C pine nuts
  • 1 C quinoa
  • 2 C water
  • Sea salt to taste
  • 1/4 C fresh lemon juice
  • 2 stalks celery, chopped
  • 1/4 red onion, chopped
  • 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
  • 1/2 tsp ground cumin
  • 1 bunch fresh parsley, chopped

Instructions:

  1. Toast the pine nuts briefly in a dry skillet over medium heat. This will take about 5 minutes, and stir constantly as they will burn easily. Set aside to cool.
  2. In a saucepan, combine the quinoa, water and salt. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium and cook until quinoa is tender and water has been absorbed, about 10 minutes. Cool slightly, then fluff with a fork.
  3. Transfer the quinoa to a serving bowl and stir in the pine nuts, lemon juice, celery, onion, cayenne pepper, cumin and parsley. Adjust salt and pepper if needed before serving.

Cooking Instructions:

  1. Measure out the dry quinoa. After cooking, 1 cup of dried quinoa will expand to about 3 cups of quinoa.
  2. Rinse the quinoa well under cold water in a fine mesh sieve (the seeds/grains are quite small). Put the quinoa in a saucepan and add cold water. Use 2 cups of water for every cup of quinoa. Add a pinch of salt.
  3. Cover and bring to a boil. As soon as it starts to boil, turn the heat down to a simmer. Simmer for 15-20 minutes. The quinoa should look slightly translucent when it’s cooked.
  4. If the quinoa is tender but there is excess water in the bottom of the saucepan, take the lid off until the water evaporates. When done, turn off the heat and put the lid on and let sit for 5 minutes.
  5. Use a fork to fluff up the quinoa and serve.