Pear-Quinoa Salad with Maple Vinaigrette

Are you craving something a little lighter after the season’s festivities? Have you resolved to eat healthier? To try more whole grains? To have more fruits and vegetables? We’ve got you covered.

This delicious salad is a great introduction to quinoa for the uninitiated, or a new way to enjoy it for those of you who are already fans.

Quinoa (that’s it, uncooked, pictured in this post) is a a recently rediscovered ancient grain native to South America. According to the World’s Healthiest Foods website, which I visited to do a little fact checking for this post, it is high in protein, and it supplies  complete protein, meaning that it includes all nine essential amino acids, which makes it a good choice for vegans concerned about getting enough protein. Quinoa also has a significant amount of the amino acid lysine, which is essential for tissue growth and repair, meaning it will help you recover from all those hours you’re planning to log at the gym this January. In addition to protein, quinoa features a host of other health-building nutrients. The WHF website says that because quinoa is a very good source of manganese as well as a good source of magnesium, folate, and phosphorus, this “grain” may be especially valuable for persons with migraine headaches, diabetes and atherosclerosis. It’s also gluten-free!

You’ll cook quinoa as a substitute for rice or pasta in many dishes. It cooks quickly on the stovetop (similar to white rice – takes about 15 minutes), and is really quite delicious.

You’ll find it in the organic section of most grocery stores  near the rice and pasta, or you can buy it in the bulk bins at places like Whole Foods. Costco also sells a BIG bag of it at a really good value if you find that you’re cooking quinoa frequently.

Okay, enough about the star ingredient and on to the recipe! Give this one a whirl and let me know what you think in comments…

 

Pear-Quinoa Salad with Maple Vinaigrette

 

makes 6-side dish  or 4-main dish servings

 

Ingredients:

Salad:

2 cups reduced-sodium chicken or vegetable broth

1 cup quinoa (rinsed if necessary)

2 ripe but firm pears, diced

2 handfuls baby spinach, washed and drained

handful dried cranberries

2 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley

1/2 cup coarsely chopped walnuts or pecans, toasted

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

Dressing:

4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

2 tablespoons pure maple syrup (the real thing, please!)

 

Directions:

1. Bring broth to a boil in a large saucepan. Stir in quinoa and reduce heat to low. Cover and cook unit the liquid is absorbed, about 15 minutes.Fluff with a fork.

2. Whisk olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and maple syrup together. Set aside.

3. In a large bowl combine diced pears, spinach, and parsley. Pour dressing over and toss to combine. Add quinoa, dried cranberries, walnuts, salt & pepper, and gently combine. Serve warm or at room temperature.

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Ten Minute Resolutions

This morning, in my monthly segment as the Healthy Living Expert on Fox 19, I shared five ideas for New Year’s Resolutions you can complete in 10 minutes or less! Often people want to be healthy but take on too much and ultimately give up before they see lasting results.

Instead of thinking in terms of all or nothing,  try a “10 minute resolution” this year. With no excuses, you can get some points on the board early and then build upon your success for more significant results throughout the year.

Here’s the clip to the segment. Remember, any of these can be done in 10 minutes or less!

1) Eat a quick breakfast – LESS than 10 minutes for many ideas – whole grain waffles or toast with peanut butter and a banana, cereal with milk and fruit, a yogurt parfait, or an energy bar and an apple

2) Get moving in the morning – even before you shower – yoga sun salutations, walking, running, weights

3) Add sleep….add 10 more minutes every few nights until you actually wake up feeling rested.

4) Take a lunch break to actually EAT – skip the multitasking and just enjoy your food – studies show that you will eat less if you do nothing else while eating because you’ll tune in to fullness cues from your body

5) Carve out a technology-free time to journal, breathe, read something inspiring, or just check in with yourself – try a simple breathing exercise like Dr Weil’s 4-7-8 technique which Dr. Stefanie Stevenson shared in the November issue of the Nourish e-newsletter.

BONUS: More Healthy 10 Minute Breakfast Ideas

Choose one of the following and pair with a piece of fruit – apple, banana, orange, grapes, etc:

  • Egg sandwich – one egg and one slice of cheese on a High Fiber English Muffin
  • High Quality Energy bar
  • High Fiber Toast with Cottage Cheese or Greek Yogurt
  • High Fiber Cold Cereal with Milk
  • Quick Cook Oatmeal with almond or coconut milk, berries, and nuts
  • Waffle Sandwich – 2 whole wheat frozen waffles with peanut butter or almond butter
  • Yogurt Parfait – Greek yogurt, berries, Kashi Heart to Heart cereal
PS – I just learned this morning that Panera is now offering organic steel cut oatmeal as a breakfast option! 320 calories and 9 g fiber…with some fresh strawberries and toasted pecans as toppings included!
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Happy Healthy New Year (x108)!

January 1st is here, blank and fresh like the first page of a brand new notebook. Don’t you just love beginnings? As the calendar page turns, it’s as if the air is cleared and every breath is full of possibility. What will you do this year? Who will you be?

As the world rushes to make resolutions, perhaps you can first take a breath and create some time to ponder what your body and soul really want in 2012. If you just join the crowd in saying you want to lose 10 pounds or eat better or get organized or exercise more, your intentions won’t be clear enough to be meaningful and actionable. Making real changes requires specificity and determination. You need to be ready to do the work and feel drawn toward it or it simply won’t happen. So please, in these precious, unmarred, first few days of 2012, make time to think. Resolve that you will listen to what your truest self wants. And then commit to delivering exactly that.

Let me illustrate this point. I started 2012 by doing 108 Sun Salutations today in a New Year’s Day yoga class. As I was deciding whether or not to take this on, I did a few sun salutations at home yesterday. It really wasn’t bad at all. “Ok,” I thought to myself, “how hard can this be?” After taking the class, I can tell you the answer is PRETTY DARN HARD! One sun salutation is easy if you’ve been practicing yoga, but 108 is NOT! In fact, I’d argue that 108 of anything is difficult! (Plus, the darling instructors leading the class threw in lots of extra twists and turns for good measure – which did nothing to easy the difficulty.)

My point is that 108 days from now (April 17th if you’re keeping track), your resolution to eat better or to work out more or to get organized simply will not feel as easy as it does today.  Make the resolution anyhow. But get some support! Enlist a friend to cheer you on, or reach out to my team at Nourish. We would be honored to walk beside you in 2012 as you make your health and well-being a priority.

I’d love to hear from you to talk about how we can support you. You can email me directly  or call us at 513-245-4224.

Here’s to making 2012 your healthiest year yet, one day at a time!

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