Crunchy Cashew Thai Quinoa Salad with Ginger Peanut Dressing

¾ cup uncooked quinoa
1-2 cups shredded red cabbage, depending on how much crunch you like
1 red bell pepper, diced
½ red onion, diced
1 cup shredded carrots
½ cup chopped cilantro
¼ cup diced green onions
½ cup cashew halves or peanuts (honey-roasted is good)
Optional: 1 cup edamame or chickpeas
Fresh lime, for a bit of tang


For the dressing:
¼ cup all natural peanut butter
2 teaspoons freshly grated ginger
3 tablespoon soy sauce, gluten-free if desired
1 tablespoon honey (use agave if vegan)
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon olive oil
Water to thin, if necessary


Instructions
1. To cook quinoa: Rinse quinoa with cold water in mesh strainer. In a medium saucepan,
bring 1 ½ cups of water to a boil. Add in quinoa and bring mixture to a boil. Cover,
reduce heat to low and let simmer for 15 minutes or until quinoa has absorbed all of the
water. Remove from heat and fluff quinoa with fork; place in large bowl and set aside to
cool for about 10 minutes. You should have a little over 2 cups of quinoa.

2. To make dressing: Add peanut butter and honey or agave to a medium microwave safe
bowl; heat in microwave for 20 seconds. Add in ginger, soy sauce, vinegar, and both
sesame and olive oil and stir until mixture is smooth and creamy. If you want a thinner
dressing, simply stir in a teaspoon or two of water or olive oil.

3. Add as much or as little dressing as you’d like to the quinoa. I always start out with a
little bit of dressing and usually add more to suit my taste preferences. Alternatively you
can save the dressing for later and add when you are ready to eat; however the flavors of
the dressing usually soak into the salad so I love adding it to the quinoa first.

4. Next fold in red pepper, onion, cabbage, carrots, and cilantro into the quinoa. Garnish
with cashews and green onions. Serve chilled or at room temperature with lime wedges if
desired.

Layered Picnic Loaves

photo and recipe by Taste of Home

• Prep: 15 min. + chilling
• Yield: 12 Servings

• 2 unsliced loaves (1 pound each) Italian bread
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning, divided
• 1/2 pound deli roast beef
• 12 slices part-skim mozzarella cheese (1 ounce each)
• 16 fresh basil leaves
• 3 medium tomatoes, thinly sliced
• 1/4 pound thinly sliced salami
• 1 jar (6-1/2 ounces) marinated artichoke hearts, drained and sliced
• 1 package (10 ounces) ready-to-serve salad greens
• 8 ounces thinly sliced deli chicken
• 1 medium onion, thinly sliced
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper

Directions

• Cut loaves in half horizontally; hollow out tops and bottoms, leaving 1/2-in. shells (discard removed bread or save for another use).
• Combine oil and garlic; brush inside bread shells. Sprinkle with 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning. Layer bottom of each loaf with a fourth of the roast beef, mozzarella, basil, tomatoes, salami, artichokes, salad greens, chicken and onion. Repeat layers. Season with salt, pepper and remaining Italian seasoning.
• Drizzle with remaining oil mixture if desired. Replace bread tops; wrap tightly in plastic wrap. Refrigerate at least 1 hour before slicing. Yield: 2 loaves (12 servings each).