Quinoa Bean Salad

The LVC experience encourages simple and sustainable living, and there is no place that is more evident than in the kitchen. Living on a small budget means you often have to get creative with food. By cooking from scratch and searching for foods that are simple, close to their natural state and life-giving, eating healthy comes more easily. It certainly has its challenges, but occasionally you find a gem.

I'd like to share with you a delicious healthy recipe that I concocted myself with some guidance of the LVC cookbook:

1 cup quinoa
Handful spinach
Handful lettuce
1/2 15-oz can "salad" beans - mine was a combination of garbanzo, red and pinto
1/4 cup sliced cucumber, chopped
1/4 green pepper, chopped - any bell pepper would do
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp olive oil
sprinkle of salt

Cook quinoa a rice cooker or on stovetop with 2 cups of water. Combine spinach and lettuce in a bowl. Drain and rinse the beans (this eliminates much of the sodium in the canning process), and add to the bowl along with the pepper, cucumber and garlic. Once quinoa is cooked, add and toss. Add lemon juice, olive oil and salt. Serves 1 hungry girl with possibility for lunch leftovers. Best with blended frozen strawberries in orange juice to drink.