A Summertime Favorite

Karen's Lemon Arugula Salad

Years ago, my dear friend Karen (yes, we share the same name), shared this recipe with me. It has become a favorite of mine, and I often make it for my family and our friends. It's a great go-to meal that you can easily modify by adding or removing as much of any ingredient as you like.

The quinoa recipe makes more than one cup, so I save the extra grains for my next day of cooking. Also, if you want to add some protein to this salad, grilled shrimp tastes great mixed into it.

I hope you enjoy this salad as much as I do; I'm sure it will become one of your favorites too.

What You Need

Lemon Vinaigrette

1 Meyer lemon, juiced (3 tbsp)

– 6 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

– ½ tsp honey

– ½ tsp Dijon mustard

½ tsp fine sea salt

¼ tsp pepper

Salad

6 cups baby arugula

1 cup quinoa (tri-color)

½ cup pumpkin seeds (pepitas)

½ cup pomegranate seeds

1 cup roasted corn (available frozen at the grocery store)

– 1 or 2 avocados, cut in ½ inch cubes

– 2 tbsp Cotija cheese, crumbled

Makes four servings. Total time to prepare: 25-30 minutes.

Directions

Make the vinaigrette.

In a small bowl, whisk together the lemon juice, olive oil, Dijon mustard, honey, salt, and pepper.

I use an emulsifier to blend the vinaigrette, but you can combine the ingredients however you prefer.

Make the salad.

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– Prepare and cook quinoa ahead of time by bringing 1 cup of quinoa and 2 cups of water to a boil. Reduce to simmer and cover. Cook about 15 minutes until water is absorbed. Cooked grain should be soft and appear translucent. Spread out onto a sheet pan to cool.

In a large serving bowl, toss together the arugula, quinoa, pumpkin seeds, pomegranate seeds, thawed roasted corn, and avocado.

Drizzle the vinaigrette and toss the salad to coat all of the ingredients.

– Sprinkle Cotija cheese on top (optional, not pictured). – Enjoy!