Ingredients
Preparation
- In a saucepan of salted, boiling water, cook quinoa for 12 to 15 minutes or until tender. Rinse under cold water and drain well. Cool to room temperature.
- In a small bowl of cold water, soak red onion for 5 minutes. Drain.
- In a large bowl, mix vinegar, oil, tomatoes and cucumbers. Season with salt and pepper. Add quinoa, onion, spinach and basil. Adjust seasoning. Pour into a deep serving dish. Sprinkle with ricotta and pine nuts.
Note
You can replace pressed ricotta with fresh ricotta quenelles. Pressed ricotta can be found in cheese shops or Italian grocery stores.
Grating fresh tomato is a fast way to recover the juice and flesh. Cut a tomato in half horizontally then grate the flesh side down to the skin. This technique also applies to cucumber, which we grated for this salad. Once your quick coulis is done, simply add to the vinaigrette. This gives it taste and keeps it moist, but also reduces the amount of oil used.