Last night I taught a healthy living class.
And like always, as the guest were arriving, I was behind on everything…
I had friends making Peanut Butter Pong Balls(made with almond butter instead), made my dad run to McDonalds to get some ‘samples’ (of no-no’s), and I was busy making sure things were set and ready to go…Oh and repeating in my mind the things I was going to say.
I decided to do a display table of ingredients I love that I think everybody should include in their daily eating lifestyle. Each had a little note card with info about the ingredient.
That, and I figured I would most likely forget to talk about them…so they were there for people to look at.
My mom asked why some of the notecards read, “Super Sexy” and “Totally Awesome” in which I basically replied, “That’s how I talk Maaaaoooommm DUH.”
When it came time, everybody crowded around me waiting to hear what I had to say. Pretty much through my whole presentation I was scatterbrained.
(This is a GREAT picture of me!)
“So these are Chia Seeds, they are full of Omega-3′s! Oh wait! Let’s talk about lunches!”
What the?
I’m also pretty sure in the beginning my voice shook like thunder due to nerves, and I sounded like I wanted to cry. I also said the phrase, “I could pound it when it came to eating…”
My grandma that was there had NO idea what I was talking about…
All together though, I had such an amazing time. It meant the world to me to have the people that I loved, look up to, and even leaders who taught me, be there and support me and my passion.
I tried my best to get my message across, and I am praying tonight that people understood more than, “Uh dummm…I like Spinach. It’s tasty…I like to drink it too.”
Besides that, I wanted everyone to know that this world that God has created for us brings forth so many amazing whole, fresh, and natural foods. We need to stop feeding our bodies packaged, processed, mass produced, and an excess of animal products. We need to start giving our body the wholesome food that it deserves and needs to survive, which are things like grains, fruits, veggies, nuts, legumes.
I also figured if anything, I could win over there hearts with samples.
My first sample was a green smoothie, which if you know me is an obvious choice for a sample.
I really wanted to get across that adding a green smoothie into your every day lifestyle will do wonders in it self. Your giving your body things that you would most likely not eat on its own, especially in its raw state (not cooked, doused with dressing, etc.).
They are great for babies, toddlers, kids, AND adults. Not to mention, they are SO versatile. If you follow me on facebook, you might have heard that a smoothie made with milk, spinach, kale, chard, cocoa powder, cherries, and bananas is like dessert! (Something that NO one would complain about )
But I have to say I am kind of mean. I didn’t just do an original green drink. I made it hard core and beefed it up with tons of greens…
I really wanted them to like me.
Everything Green Smoothie
*This smoothie makes quite a bit and could easily serve two adults. Unless your like me and can eat for two, then you could drink it all on it’s own. It could also serve 2-3 kids, one mama and 2 children…etc..
Ingredients:
1 C. non dairy milk(I used almond milk-coconut milk would be good too!)
handful of spinach (about 1 c.)
handful of kale (just the leaves-no stems)
handful of swiss chard
1 green apple
1/2 medium cucumber (diced)
1 frozen banana
1 TB. chia seeds
1-2 tsp. sweetener of choice(agave or maple syrup works best) You could even throw in a few dates
Ice (about 1 1/2 C.)
Directions: Blend until creamy and delicious
I could tell people were a little worried when it came to try it.
That’s ok, I made sure I shoved one down everyones throat whether they liked it or not.
Next came a little something sweet:
Peanut Butter Protein and Energy Balls. (I made them with almond butter instead though.)
Everyone really enjoyed these. They were something sweet that you could pop in your mouth if you wanted to satisfy your sweet tooth. OR, if you need a boost during the day, wanted a snack after a workout, or even something for your kiddos after school. Naturally sweetened, full of healthy fats, proteins, and made with….Love…
Awe.
Up next we had a Lemon Quinoa Cilantro Chickpea Salad.
Yet again, I was mean and didn’t make their sample with quinoa. I actually was thinking later that night that throwing in some grain would definitely add more “Va Va Voom” to this meal, so the next day I made it again.
You get your protein from the beans and quinoa, some good grains from the quinoa, healthy fats from the avocados, veggies from the spinach and tomatoes, and delicious-ness from the tasty dressing.
Lemon Quinoa Cilantro Chickpea Salad
Adapted from: Ohsheglows
Ingredients:
1/2 C. dry quinoa
2 C. vegetable broth
1 can garbanzo beans (drained and rinsed)
1 c. cherry tomatoes cut in half
2 avocados diced
2 C. spinach
1 bunch cilantro
1/4 C. onion
2 small cloves garlic
For the dressing:
Juice of 2 lemons
zest of 1 lemon
2 tsp. dijon mustard
2 tsp. olive oil
1 tsp. agave nectar
1/2 tsp. cumin
dash of salt and pepper
Directions:
1. Make your quinoa first. Soak the quinoa in a pot in the veggie broth for about 15 minutes. After that, turn on the heat to medium high and let the quinoa come to a boil. Once it boils, reduce heat to medium/low and let quinoa simmer. Stir every so often, and cook quinoa for about 20-25 minutes just until the liquid absorbs. You don’t want it completely dried out, so when there is just a TINY amount of liquid left in the pot, remove it from heat and put a lid on it. Set it aside, and make the rest of the salad.
Your quinoa will look similar to this when it’s all done:
2. In a food processor, add your spinach and cilantro. Make sure to wash you greens.
I found an unpleasant surprise in my cilantro.
Yuck. Dirt is so disgusting.
3. Process the greens until they are finely diced. You can do this by hand as well if you don’t have a food processor.
4. Add the greens to a bowl, and set aside. Next take your onion and garlic and finely dice those (I do this in the food processor to), and add to the greens mixture. Next add your chickpeas and stir until everything is combined and coated. If the quinoa is cooled, you can add it to the chickpea mixture next.
5. Make your dressing by whisking all the ingredients together. Pour over salad, and mix until combined. Add in tomatoes and avocado and mix. Set in fridge for about 10-15 minutes before serving so the flavors set.
This is hands down one of my favorite salads to date!
Everything turned out to be such a success! I am so grateful for those that came out to support me!
And of coarse, none of this would be possible without you guys!! Thanks for coming back each and every day and supporting me…
I know things tend to get a little “Cray Cray” over here some times…
Come back Friday and see what Baby Boo is eating off those beaters. !
It looks like you led an outstanding class! I wish I could have been there to sample all of your delicious, healthy foods.
I hope you got the wheels turning in a lot of minds and helped people move towards a better way of eating.
I would have loved to share samples with you!
As for those minds turning, I hope so too! There isn’t a better feeling than knowing you impacted someone when it came to making better choices.
You would have won me over in a millisecond with that tastiness! Never mind the fact that everything I eat is green-sh.
I bet you were fabulous. such a great idea to have these classes!!!
Oh cute! Congrats on the presentation! I really wish I could have been there! Love all your recipes, they look amazing! I’m think I’m going to make that green smoothie today.
Can’t wait for Friday!
Thanks Annie!! I would have loved to have you!! Make the green smoothie and let me know how it goes!!
Wow so cool that you put on a healthy living class!! I’m so happy it was a success. And I would have totally loved every minute of it. The samples sound like the bomb… More greens please!!
Thanks Heather! It was a blast, and I would love to do it again!
More greens=one happy me!
I wanna come to your next class! It looks soooo fun!!!!!
I dunno if I’ll have another one, but if I do I’ll def let you! I want to go thrift store shopping with you!
Great Job!!
Way to go!
Thanks Renee!
Ooh, can I come? I’m sure you could win over even the toughest critics with that spread. Baby Boo is just too cute!
Come anytime!
I figured, if anything, people like samples right?:-)
Oh it looks so great–I wanna come! I totally believe in everything you teach and I think it’s great that you’re spreading the knowledge! We’d all be better off if people took the time to eat and appreciate all of the amazing healing foods that God has put here for us!
We are on the same page! I love that you said Healing Foods! Such a great way to put it!
Congrats on the class!! That is so cool!
Thanks Alicia! it was totally cool!
Just as an idea to throw out there – you should film the next one and post it as a vlog series! I’d love to ‘attend’ your class!
That green smoothie is finally going to convince me to try a green smoothie. I have no doubt it would make me feel amazing, I just need to ease into the ‘green’ taste a little, but the banana and apple you added will help that, I’m sure. And that salad looks AMAZING!
Good for you on spreading the word and doing it so gracefully!
Yum! I’m jealous I couldn’t join!
great job girl!!! YAY!! everything looks great
I would be nervous too!!
and oh yes we are huge fans of green smoothies, have one everyday, sometimes 2
we have even gotten our whole family having them though they do not always remember to make one. baby steps with them haha
and that is one of our favorite ‘food and health’ quotes! so true and so powerful!
What an awesome job you did and what a great turnout!!! Everything you mad elooks great and your notecards and all the info looks so well planned out!!!!!
Hi Arielle, Thank you so much for coming and presenting the Healthy Living Class. You did such a great job!!! You made it seem possible, not so overwhelming, to change my eating habits to eat cleaner and healthier foods. You are so incredibly inspiring!!! In fact, I went to the store the next day and bought some of the items you suggested and am trying some of your recipes. I am super excited to try healthier options. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Some of the comments and feedback I’ve received from the ladies who attended the class are: “That was so good!” “Really good information!” “I can hardly wait to try some of these recipes.” “Makes me want to really watch what I eat.” “She has some great ideas.” “That was so inspiring!” “I’m excited to try making some of these recipes for my family.” “Wow! Good information.” So see??? You’re awesome!!! Great job!!! Thanks again for all the work and the wonderful presentation. I appreciate it and am anxious to keep following your blog! Love, Debbie
Awe thank you so much Debbie! I had such a great time teaching the class. It was a first time for me, so I was a little nervous and scatterbrained, but I had such wonderful woman around me, it made it alot easier! I really appreciate you calling me and letting me do it! Lot’s of fun! Come back to the blog anytime you want! leave me comments or send me an e-mail if you have any questions! So glad you have met you Debbie, your are such a sweet lady!!
This sounds like it would have been a very inspiring class and I would have loved to try all those samples too! I will definitely have to make that quinoa salad, it looks amazing!
I am making a quinoa salad for dinner tonight: quinoa, lettuce, red pepper, cucumber with a rawish green dressing. It is so yummy! I am going to share it on my blog as well during the week! PS-your salad looks delish!
Congrats on such a fun and well-put-together event! I would love to attend something like that from a fellow healthy-minded food blogger
I made this quinoa salad earlier this week, and it was super delicious! My husband, who normally hates chickpeas and didn’t think would be a fan of quinoa, was raving about it. He even gladly had leftovers the next day (this recipe makes a lot!). Thanks!
I am reading your blog and I saw a picture of your Lemon Quinoa Cilantro chick pea salad, and you got me hooked. it was very well done and loved the assorted colors. yum I should try and make that some time looks very tasty. Love ya Jamie
Yum! I’ve been collecting quinoa recipes on Pinterest–I tried your Lemon Quinoa Cilantro Chickpea salad at our Thanksgiving Saturday brunch, and it was a hit! I’m sending the link to others who asked for the recipe! Thanks!
Hi – thanks for some great recipes. I originally found your quinoa one on Pinterest. I can’t wait to try it. I’m so glad I found your blog. I look forward to reading more posts! Congrats on your pregnancy! A very minor thing I noticed throughout your blog – “course” as in “of course” is spelled “course” not “coarse,” which means rough. I thought you would like to know! Thanks again!
I love your attitude and message, and the fact that you are trying to educate others! Your recipes look great too! One thought I had while reading your page was that you might try to eliminate the agave nectar, which I see you’ve added to both of the dishes featured here. I don’t mean not to use any sweetener at all, I think a little sweetness is fine in moderation. But I think, as you seem to as well, that the most natural foods are the best for us. Honey and maple syrup are great sweeteners, and your suggestion to use dates (a nutritious, whole food) is a creative one I had never thought to try! Agave nectar, however, is not a natural food. If you do a little reading/research on where it comes from you will find that there is actually a process of extracting and concentrating it from the plant. The name is extremely misleading, being that “nectar” conjures images of a pure, sweet syrup oozing from beautiful wildflowers and being slurped up by dainty little hummingbirds, and even alludes to a ‘food of the gods,’ if you will. Unfortunately, as I said, this is not the case with agave nectar, which is more akin to a corn syrup. Not to sound like a looney-toon conspiracy theorist, but I do think this name was deliberately chosen by the companies who manufacture the product to intentional mislead people in this way
At least the other sweeteners you mentioned offer some nutritional substance, rather than empty sugar calories. If a syrup-type consistency is desired, honey is actually a very desirable food to include in your diet. As your sign says, “Let food be thy medicine!”
The Quinoa Chickpea salad is AHHHmazing!!! my new favorite!!! I just added a little red pepper because I love spicy…Thank you for sharing!
Thank you for the Quinoa recipe. I used chicken stock instead of veggie stock and half parsley half cilantro. Amazing.
Dear Diva,
I found your blog because your lemon quinoa salad was on Pinterest and I clicked on it and it led me to your blog. I really love your blog and your blog really inspired me to create my own blog about food and life called “Tea Time for Two.” I also tried your lemon quiona salad and it is amazing! Thanks for the inspiration and I especially like the idea of just having people over and having a healthy food night. Thanks for the inspiration!
I also found your blog from Pinterest and was looking through to find the quinoa salad recipe. I happened to see in your sixth picture about sweeteners, a package from the Loma Linda Market! I love shopping there! I’m guessing that you probably live in the same area as me and are SDA. What a coincidence that would be!
It’s a great market! I grew up in the area! I’m not SDA, but I know a lot of people that are in the area! Very fun coincidence!
This smoothie was amazing! I was wondering if you have figured out how many calories are in a serving of it? When I tried to add it up, it seemed high at around 430. Thoughts?
Thanks for the healthy encouragement!!
Hi Brittany-
So glad you enjoyed the smoothie, it’s one of my favorites!
When I figured out the calories, it came out to about 350-400, all depending on if you choose to use a sweetener or not. But this smoothie makes a huge amount, and can serve two (which I should have written in the recipe, so sorry!). I can drink it all on my own, but for others they will only be able to drink half. As for the high amount of calories, the ingredients used in this smoothie aren’t high in unhealthy fats, processed sugars, or really have anything unhealthy at all. Everything is digested easily and great for you. It’s meant to give you that boost of nutrition on a regular basis that is hard to get otherwise. So even the calories seem high, if you were to eat 3 meals a day around 400 calories, you would be eating 1200-2000 calories a day, which is a healthy goal. I stopped counting calories a long time ago, and started focusing on the types of food I was eating, and whether or not they were healthy for me, rather than how many calories. (for example: you could eat 100 calories worth of oreos, and even though it’s only 100 calories it isn’t the best choice of food.) Sorry this is such a long response, but I hope it helped! I’m going to fix the recipe so it talks about the serving sizes.
I want to make this salad on Sunday to bring to work for lunch all week – do you think it’ll keep/be good that long? I know avocado can brown quickly, but I’m thinking the lemon might prevent that? thoughts? Can’t wait to try it!
I think a couple of days would be fine, but I am not sure about a full week. Especially since there is spinach in there and it might get kind of mushy…But then again, I have never tried this so I’m not 100% sure! But my guess would be 2-4 days..
I must make this salad, it looks totally delicious. Thanks for the fun posting… what a darling little girl. She looks like I feel… ‘cray, cray’.
I found the quinoa recipe through Pinterest. I tried the smoothie and the qunioa salad and both were delicious! One question: when you simmer the qunioa, do you leave the lid off? I left it on like I do when I normally cook qunioa, and there seemed to be too much broth that was not absorbed after 25 minutes.
I leave the lid off, but sometimes I leave it on. I wonder why it took so long to cook? I usually soak my quinoa before, so it cooks quicker. (About 15 min of soaking and 15 min of cooking.)
Hello! I just wanted to thank you for sharing your recipe for the Lemon Quinoa Cilantro Chickpea Salad. I have made it several times, and it’s delicious!! The only change I made out of necessity was to use red wine vinegar in place of the mustard the first few times I made it, because I didn’t have mustard on-hand, and added a dash of agave to the dressing to balance the vinegar tang. My ‘meat & potatoes’ fiance raves about this, and my 5 year old step daughter loves it as well!
I made the quinoa salad. It was great. My husband loved the lemon dressing. It went great with nachos later!
This was so delicious and healthy! Thanks for the recipe, can’t wait to try others of yours.
I love that salad… pinned it. Just love quinoa and chickpeas!
Just made the salad (with some adaptations according to what I had on hand), just wanted to say “Thanks!” It is so yummy and delicious.:)
This makes me so happy Katie!! So glad you enjoyed the salad!
hi i want make this salad. can you tell me the serving size? i.e. how many serving its going to be ? I am doing WW and i would like to calculate the points per serving. It looks delicious. Can’t wait to try it.
Hi Dipti, depending on how you are serving this, the number of servings depend. (Meaning as a side dish or as a main dish.)
I usually get about 3-4 servings on it, about a cup each. Hope that helps!
That salad is one of the best I have ever tasted. So fresh and satisfying!
Hi! I just found your blog through pinterest. I love it! I made your green smoothie and quinoa chickpea salad. They were great! Thanks!
I have made several of your recipes and have loved them. This is the next one I want to try but I am avoiding Agave Nectar. Can I substitute Honey? I am not a cook so if this is a stupid question please forgive me!
Oh, and I shared the love on Pinterest, but it wouldn’t let me pin the picture of the dish. Do you not want your recipes pinned? I can remove it if you like.
Thanks!
Hi Sarah! I am so glad that you have been trying the recipes, thank you! And yes, you can definitely sub honey for agave…NOT a stupid question at all!
And I don’t know why pinterest isn’t letting my recipe pictures get pinned. It’s really weird..I definitely don’t mind if people pin my recipes. So sorry about that!
I think this is a great recipe, however I would like to point out that honey has more health properties than Agave Nectar. Agave is actually one of the HIGHEST fructose sweeteners someone could use, it is also very processed. Honey is pure and naturally produced, used in many health and illness remedies. Raw honey over Agave is better for you in many ways!
http://www.foodrenegade.com/agave-nectar-good-or-bad/ Here is a link to a very informative article on this matter 
Pure Stevia is also always a good choice in sweetener.
Thanks! I actually agree! I use honey a lot more than I do agave. Thanks again for sharing!
Love your blog and pholosophy! Just wanted to note that you refer to quinoa as a grain, when actually it’s a seed (which helps explain why it doesn’t contain gluten, etc). I was surprised when I learned this, and it stuck with me, so I thought your listeners/readers might be interested too. I am making this salad tonight after pinning it on Pinterest a few weeks ago. Thanks!
That was the first thing I noticed when I was looking at (or, you know, drooling over!) the pictures! Scrolled through the comments first to make sure others hadn’t already pointed it out.
I love that so many people are now cooking with quinoa! It makes it SO much easier when bringing it to parties to have people go “ooooh!” instead of “……….uh, what?”
These recipes all look delicious and I cannot WAIT to make that green smoothie a daily staple! Thank you so much for posting all the lovely pictures and recipes!
Just wanted to let you know that I have made this salad (which I found through Pinterest) 4x now and it is my absolute FAVORITE dish!! Everyone raves about how good it is. Thanks for an amazing recipe!!!!!!!!!!!
Awe thanks so much Debbie! You are so welcome! I am so glad you have been enjoying it!
Thanks for the great recipe! I’ve made it once (after tasting it and getting the recipe from a friend on Pinterest), and am making it again tonight. I’m bringing it to a luncheon at work tomorrow. Can you tell me the best way to make it ahead, so I don’t have to do too much in the morning. Specifically, when should I put the dressing on, and what can be chopped and mixed ahead of time? I know the avacodos will brown without lemon/lime juice, so I may chop them in the a.m. Any other tips? Thanks so much!!!
P.S. Before I made this recipe I had never before bought Quinoa, agave nectar, or vegetable broth and had never zested a lemon…you’ve opened new doors! and it’s soooooo delicious!!
Hi Linda!! I am so glad you have tried and loved the salad! I have made the salad one day, and let it sit in the fridge overnight, and made it the next day. You can dice and add the avocados and mix them in that morning so they don’t get too soggy/brown. You can also make everything, dressing included, and then mix it all in the morning. (Including waiting to cut the avocados in the morning too.) I hope that makes sense and helps you out some! Thanks again!!
This recipe has been a staple for my cleanse and a life saver for my home. I do all the cooking at home and it’s a winner! My picky boyfriend loves it and asks for quinoa salad now, he doesn’t even know there’s spinach in it! I’ve made it so many different ways with just what I have on hand, substituting kidney beans for garbanzos or basil for cilantro….it’s AH-MAZING any way you have it! the ultimate modifiable salad! Thanks Diva!
I got the quinoa salad recipe from pinterest and made it for my parents – we all loved it! Thanks!!!
Yea!! So glad to hear this Casey! Glad your family enjoyed your cooking!!
Made the quinoa chickpea cilantro salad tonight and it was amazing! The hubby loved it too. I would have never thought of putting the greens in the food processor, but that’s what sets this salad apart. Awesome site! I can’t wait to try the peach ice cream later this week!
This lemon quinoa salad rocks
I just made the Lemony Quinoa Cilantro Chickpea salad, and it’s INCREDIBLE! What a fabulous combination of flavors and textures in one bite. Not to mention it just looks pretty with all the green!
I found your recipe posted on Pinterest and now I’ve got your blog saved in my Reading folder on my computer because I just adore your writing, and I completely back your approach to eating natural foods and taking care of ourselves; what goes in our body is extremely important! I, too, was bigger in HS and college, and then got super sick for about 2 years before I went Gluten-free (when all GF foods were disgusting! haha). Now, five years later, I am in tip-top shape (mostly!) and I can pretty much make anything GF and no one will know the difference. Anyway, I can’t wait to try your other recipes!! I love that your recipes incorporate things like coconut milk, and alternative natural sweeteners, all things “natural,” etc.; things I incorporate daily. Thanks for creating such an inspiring blog~
Hi! First time reader here and I know this blog was posted forever ago…I’m wondering what I could substitute for the dairy/non dairy in the green shake/smoothie. I feel like it is just added calories but I guess I dont really know the benefits of almond milk. Is it really good for you to have every day? Thoughts? Thank you! I really enjoy reading your blog…and I’m not much of a blog reader!
By the way, I have this amazing fresh summer salad that I know your readers would love. My sister in law made it up and my husband and I have made it about 5 times in the last 2weeks. I would love to have you try it. Not much to it but the ingredients are 1 can chick peas, 1 peeled cucumber, 12 oz. cooked edemame (I buy it frozen and shelled then cook and rinse with cold water to keep the salad cool), fresh uncooked corn (from 1 cob), 1 avocado, 1.5 green onions, couple shakes of crushed red pepper flakes(add to taste), and cilantro(we added that). We figured out somewhat of a recipe for the dressing…juice from 1 lemon, 2 tablespoons olive oil, 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar, 1teaspoon brown sugar (could substitute with honey), 1/2 teaspoon kosher or sea salt. Mix dressing first then add to other ingredients. We sometimes add a little kosher salt to taste if it needs it. This meal is so easy and can feed about 4. Hope you like it!
Hi Tabitha! Thanks so much for your questions. Actually almond milk has a lot less calories than milk, when you buy the unsweetened kind. I don’t count my calories, but if that’s something you are watching then I would definitely go with almond milk. I love using different types of milk, for one because I don’t drink milk (I’m lactose) but also because non dairy milks have great nutritional benefits too. I would definitely look into them for sure, and do your own research, but you don’t have to drink it everyday. But it’s definitely worth trying
!
I made your quinoa salad as is except for the onions which my two daughters are not huge fans of and it was so good! Thanks for the recipe. It is a keeper!
Just made the quinoa salad and it was delish! However, I followed the directions and put in only 1/2 c quinoa and it came out very mushy. Are you sure it’s not supposed to be 1 c quinoa? That would be the normal ratio of quinoa to liquid. Just checking. I think next time I will double the amount of dry quinoa, but besides that, my whole family loved the salad. I will be adding it to mt repetoire for sure. Thanks!!
Do you cook your quinoa covered or uncovered. This was my first shot at making it. The packages said to cover it, but it came out very wet. What did I do wrong?
Your Healthy Living Class looks like a wonderful event! I hope you are continuing to host more of them.
Wow!! I have just made this quinoa recipe tonight and I was blown away by all the amazing and great flavours!! It’s absolutely dlicious!! I may have made it a bit too strong (garlic and coriander) but I looove those flavours, so I don’t mind at all!! (maybe my colleagues tomorrow
)
I can’t wait to have a go at some other recipes of yours, I hope they’re all as good as this one!
Oh, I did change the chick peas for some tune chunks cause I fancied some fish and it was delish as well! Added a bit of focaccia bread and spread the salad onto the bread which was great as well!! Yuuummmm!!
I’ve made the quinoa salad twice and they came out delicious both times! I want to try out your energy balls next! Thanks so much for the recipes!
Here is a picture of my quinoa salad, also a shout-out to your post
http://ikookies.wordpress.com/2012/08/10/lemon-quinoa-cilantro-chickpea-salad/
Thanks so much! The picture looks great!!
Delicious! I made this for lunch today and it was SOOO GOOD!
Thank you for your great recipes!
I surely will try this recipe! I love chickpeas and are into quinoa.
Thanks! Loooved the process with details and all.
Yum! I am going to use the Lemon Cilantro Chickpea Salad at the Health & Fitness Vacation I am hosting this Nov. in St. Augustine, FL! This is the perfect food for a healthy beach trip! Check it out at my blog! Spots are still open
So we did have the Lemon Cilantro Chickpea Salad on the Fitness Vacation and it was perfect! Everyone loved it! I took pictures of it, but they did not look as good as yours! You can see it at ashleybensonfitness.com
Now that I’m home, I can’t wait to make it for my family
I am so happy!! I saw that you made the salad, that’s great! A Fitness vacation sounds amazing might I add!!
Amazing Lemon Cilantro Avocado Chickpea Salad! I didn’t have all the ingredients for the dressing so I just used a little bit of lime juice – it is so good! Will definitely make this again!
Hi! Your quinoa salad looks amazing! I notice you used agave nectar in the dressing, can anything else be a substitute for it? I know you don’t count calories but for me I need to as I am trying to lose weight. One day I won’t and will be able to gauge my intake but for now I rely on calorie counting. I think healthy living classes should be more abundant. I live in Canada and with not such a good variety of foods, I think it’s essential. Thanks so much!
Hi Ang!
You could try honey, maple syrup, or even maybe a little bit of stevia. I’m sorry you don’t have a lot available to you, that definitely makes it hard!
We made this on my Health & Fitness Vacation in Florida last week! It was SO good – everyone loved it! Check it out on my blog! Thanks for sharing.
Thank you sooo much!! And can I just say a fitness vacation sounds AMAZING!!
Eating the Quinoa Chickpea salad as we speak and it is wonderful! I added some feta cheese and grilled shrimp. So refreshing! Thanks so much
Yum! Love the additions Chrissy! Thanks or trying it and letting me know
!
I found your blog/recipe on Pinterest. I made the quinoa salad for a work potluck and it was amazing!! I will be making this dish many more times. Note: I followed the quinoa/liquid ratio directions listed on my quinoa package. The quinoa/liquid ratio listed in the recipe ended in a very mushy texture and I had to start over.
Thanks for your post.I will review it again.Recipes
Just tried this salad, AMAZING!!!
Your salad was delicious, we absolutely loved it. Thank you for your recipe; we’ll definitely use it again!
I’m surprised you teach a class on “healthy living” yet find dirt “disgusting”. I LOVE finding soil left on my veggies–it means they actually came FROM THE EARTH. It means they weren’t highly processed, knocked around through being shipped across the world to get to my table, etc. In fact, our cilantro we get in our CSA drop off box comes STILL IN THE SOIL. It continues growing IN OUR FRIDGE. Talk about fresh!!! Yes, washing your veggies is definitely important, but I encourage you to start thinking more positively about finding the natural stuff in your foods. We live in a major city and we devote our tiny front yard to a garden because we want our son to grow up eating foods that are fresh, local and to learn the importance of these things! I encourage all of you seekers of “healthy living” to do the same with a spare patch of your yard, or deck, or balcony even!
Thanks again for the recipe and all the best with the class!
Hi Gina!
I totally agree, when there is dirt on the produce that means that it is fresh from the dirt, which I love! I was only trying to be funny and make a joke but sometimes I am not very funny lol! Thanks for making the salad, glad you enjoyed it!
Made the quinoa salad tonight- threw a jalapeño in the food processor with the spinach and cilantro. Have it a nice kick and was a huge hit with the usually carnivorous boyfriend!
LOVE the idea of adding a jalepeno! My husband would love that extra kick!
so trying the quinoa recipe.
So happy! Let me know your thoughts!
The quinoa salad was absolutely delcious! It will be a new staple recipe of mine!!
So glad to hear that Sam!
Wow!!! Made this tonight after seeing the recipe on Pinterest. This salad is as beautiful as it is tasty. This will definitely be in the main rotation with our favorites from now on! Thank you so much for sharing!