Quinoa and Kale Salad

    My friend Elena recently came back from dinner at Fat Cat excited about a salad she had there.  She said she wanted to figure out how replicate the salad.  Fast forward a few weeks and my friend Kelly posted this link to Facebook: Kale & Quinoa Salad, inspired by Fat Cat Pie.   After hearing all about this salad during lunch today, I picked up the things I thought I would need so I could find out what all the hype was about.  Turns out this salad is simple to make in a short amount of time and tastes delicious.  It's also packed with protein from the quinoa and nuts.  

Quinoa and Kale Salad

Ingredients
1/2 cup dry quinoa
6-8 cups kale, finely chopped
2 tbsp olive oil
1/4 cup walnuts, chopped
1/4 cup dried cranberries
1/8 cup sunflower seeds
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

Method
1. Prepare quinoa according to the package.
2. While the quinoa is cooking, chop the kale.  Add to the pot with the quinoa and cover so the kale wilts.
3. Once the kale has wilted, add the olive oil, nuts and berries, and parmesan cheese.  
4. Mix together and season with salt.


The Taste Test
    This was a very filling salad with a lot of taste and texture.  Kelly said she used a salad mix that had nuts and berries, so while I was at the store I bought a cranberry nut trail mix that I used in place of the suggested mix in the recipe.  I think you could probably add anything you like to add a little crunch to this dish.