Tomorrow's Lunch: Quinoa Salad

The weather today inspired me to make a fresh lunch for tomorrow; and my health--or lack thereof--inspired me to put together a healthy salad. Oh and I had vegetables about to go bad lying in my refrigerator.

So I adapted a quinoa salad that I found on GoJee--a site that you need to bookmark if it isn't on your favorites already--and its all nicely packed up for me to take it to the office in the morning  at sunrise.

Before I get to the recipe, I want to write about these past few days. I was bedridden yesterday due to a vicious cold. I had the perfect excuse to catch up on most of the TV series I watch and read up on Medieval Christianity (for academic purposes) without leaving the comfort of my cozy apartment; but to be honest--and for those of you who don't know me this might be surprising--I was less than excited about laying in bed all day. I'm an active person and when I know there is something I can be doing--be it work, exercise, cooking--I get annoyed.

Thankfully today I felt somewhat better and I was able to go about my life almost normally--I still slept in until past 9 a.m., which is also something that annoys me. Ideally my cold would dissapear by tomorrow, but realistically I know I'l have traces of it until the weekend. So in hopes of making it shorter, I shall strive to eat extremely healthy foods these next few days. Cue the quinoa.

Greek Quinoa Salad (adapted from Global Dish)
Makes about 6 servings
Active time: 10 minutes. Total time: 40 minutes.

• 2 cups vegetable broth
• 1 cup quinoa, rinsed
• 1 teaspoon Smart Balance or butter
• 1/2 red onion, chopped
• 1/4 extra virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 1 large red bell pepper, diced
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved or quartered
• 1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
• 1/2 cup Kalamata olives

1. In a medium pot, bring vegetable broth to a boil. Add quinoa, reduce heat to low and cook, covered, for about 15 minutes, or until quinoa sprouts. Remove from heat and fluff with a fork; let sit for 5 minutes. Cool at room temperature for about 10 minutes and transfer to refrigerator to cool completely, about 15 more minutes.
2. In a small sauce pan, melt the Smart Balance over medium heat. Add onion and sauté until tender, about 4 minutes. Remove from heat and cool.
3. In a small bowl, combine olive oil and vinegar and season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
4. Transfer quinoa to a large bowl. Add bell pepper, tomatoes, cilantro, olives and cooled onion and stir. Whisk in the dressing until mixed in.

A short and cold post.

I would say I can't remember the last time my hair froze into icicles, but it was today. About five hours ago to be more specific. When I lived in Aspen, my first encounter with the frozen-hair phenomenon left me worried about the inevitable damage that my auburn locks would suffer. And I never really thought it would happen again, but it has and now I'm blogging about it.

Before I move onto food, I'm going to state the obvious and just get it out of the way: TODAY WAS REALLY COLD.

There, I feel like that is all that is needed to acknowledge today's weather. And since I'm not very inspired to write today, I'm going to keep this post short.

I made pan-grilled cod with colorful salsa for dinner. It was delicious. The artichokes complemented the tomatoes in the most subtle way; and the addition of slivered almonds added an unexpected crunch to the tangy salsa. I would pair this salsa with any grilled chicken or fish and just call it a day (or a night). Enjoy!

Fish with Tomato Artichoke Salsa (adapted from Food & Wine Best of the Best)
Active time: 20 minutes. Total time: 25 minutes
Makes 4 servings.

• 4 vine-ripened tomatoes
• 5 ounces marinated artichokes, drained
• 1/2 cup pitted kalamata olives
• 1 handful fresh parsley, chopped
• 2 tablespoons slivered almonds
• 2/3 cup + 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil 
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• Juice one lime
• 4  6-ounce pieces of fish (I used Alaskan cod)

1. Cut the tomatoes into quarters and remove seeds; finely dice the tomato skins and transfer to a bowl. Dice the artichoke hearts and add to the tomatoes. Add olives, almonds and parsley. Toss gently. Add 2/3 cup olive oil and balsamic and mix. Season with salt and pepper.
2. In a medium pan, heat 1 teaspoon olive oil over medium heat. Season fish fillets with salt and pepper. Cook fish until slightly golden on the edges, about 3 minutes on each side. Serve fish topped with salsa.