2012 holiday party recipe roundup: sweet potato and quinoa salad

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A lot of people at our holiday party commented on the sweet potato quinoa salad and really loved the dish. I let them all know that it has been a family recipe.

Since the night before the party.

All joking aside, this is a really great (and simple!) salad that gets better as it sits and the flavors have a chance to mingle (which is good, because the recipe below make a gigantic batch!).

Sweet Potato and Quinoa Salad
Slightly adapted from Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything Vegetarian



Ingredients (for a double + batch):

• 2 cup white quinoa
• 1 cup red quinoa
• 2 pounds peeled sweet potatoes
• salt
• 1 red bell pepper, diced 
• 1 yellow bell pepper, diced
• 1 green bell pepper, diced
• 1 medium shallot, minced (about 1/2 cup)
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 4 tablespoons balsamic
• 1/4 - 1/2 cup fresh chives, minced
• Salt and pepper

To prepare:

• Rinse and drain quinoa a few times, until water runs clear. Add to a large stock pot and cover with a couple of inches of cold water. Bring to a boil, and then reduce to a simmer. Simmer for about 20 minutes, or until quinoa is tender, but still has a bit of bite to it. Strain out any additional water and rinse with cool water to stop cooking. Add to a large bowl.
• Dice the sweet potato into 1/2 inch or small pieces. Add to a pot, cover with cold water and bring to a boil. Simmer for 15 minutes, or until tender. Drain and rinse with cool water to stop cooking. Add to the bowl of quinoa.
• Add diced peppers and shallots to the quinoa and toss. Season with salt and pepper.
• In a mason jar, or other container with a tightly sealed cover, add olive oil and vinegar. Shake vigorously. Season with salt and pepper.
• Add 1/2 of the dressing to the salad and toss to combine. Add additional dressing as desired and check for seasoning.
• Cover and store in fridge until ready to serve.
• When ready to serve, sprinkle to the top with chives.

Again, this salad only gets better as it sits, so I especially enjoyed it the next day in a wrap with some of the left over white bean aioli.