Light, fresh-tasting and naturally gluten-free, this quinoa salad is a perfect Spring side dish! Packed with Spring veggies and herbs, and tossed with a tasty Lemon Honey Vinaigrette, it has great flavor and great crunch! Paired with your protein of choice, it is a perfect Spring side dish for a holiday or every day!
Spring Quinoa Salad with Lemon Honey Vinaigrette
A healthy, naturally gluten-free Spring Quinoa Salad recipe that pairs with everything!
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Just in time for the gorgeous Spring weather we’re having here, I’m sharing this new salad you’re going to love… Spring Quinoa Salad with Lemon Honey Vinaigrette!
Light, fresh-tasting and naturally gluten-free, it is a perfect Spring side dish!
It’s packed with Spring veggies and herbs like asparagus, radish, snap peas and parsley giving great flavor and great crunch!
And has some crumbled feta adding just the right amount of tangy deliciousness!
Tossed in a simple Lemon Honey Vinaigrette, it is Spring perfection!
It’s light and fresh tasting, with great crunch, but still super satisfying!
And it pairs well with your protein of choice making it a perfect way to complete a meal!
A perfect, naturally gluten-free Spring side dish for a holiday or every day!
So let’s make it!
The salad is packed with whole foods and adjustable to tastes as always!
The basic ingredients are:
cooked quinoa
broccoli
asparagus
snap peas
radish
parsley
chives (not in photo)
feta (not in photo, and could skip if dairy-free)
and a simple Lemon Honey Vinaigrette (more details below)
The salad comes together quickly and can be partially or fully made ahead, or last minute!
Lets start with the quinoa. I get lots of messages about how to cook quinoa.
I follow the directions on the package and make the quinoa by combining 1 cup quinoa with 2 cups water and bringing to a boil.
Then reduce to simmer and cover for 15 minutes. Let sit 5 minutes and fluff with a fork.
Works every time!
Pro tip: you could cook your quinoa a day ahead or any time earlier in the day before assembling the salad.
While the quinoa cooks, prep the veggies.
This salad has nice crunch and crispness with all the veggies but it is not a completely raw salad. It’s a mix of raw and blanched vegetables.
The broccoli and asparagus are blanched (or boiled for just 3-5 minutes then run under cold water) so that they are tender crisp.
But the snap peas and radish are raw, giving the perfect balance of crunch and crispness.
And all the veggies are chopped small so that you get a perfect taste of them in each bite, rather than having the veggies be overwhelming.
While the quinoa cooks, it’s also a great time to whisk together the tasty Lemon Honey Vinaigrette!
Typically a vinaigrette has some kind of vinegar but in this case the lemon juice acts as the vinegar and it adds the best tangy, zippy flavor!
All you need for the Lemon Honey Vinaigrette is 5 pantry ingredients:
extra virgin olive oil
fresh lemon juice
honey
kosher salt
dijon mustard
And all you do is whisk them together!
This easy homemade salad dressing a perfect blend of tanginess from the lemon, sweetness from the honey and a touch of spice from some dijon mustard. You could skip the dijon but then the dressing is sweeter. Play around and see which you prefer.
This vinaigrette can be made ahead but it thickens and separates a bit when it chills so give time to come to room temperature and give it a good shake or whisk before adding to the salad.
Then all you do is assemble!
Add the cooked quinoa, blanched and raw veggies and feta to a big bowl and toss with the Lemon Honey Vinaigrette.
Mix together, then add fresh herbs and toss one more time!
In no time, you have a colorful, flavorful, fresh-tasting Spring quinoa salad!
Hope you love it as much as we do!
PIN it!
Scroll down for recipe. Be sure to leave a comment/ rating if you love it!
Light, fresh-tasting and naturally gluten-free, this quinoa salad is a perfect Spring side dish! Packed with Spring veggies and herbs, and tossed with a tasty Lemon Honey Vinaigrette, it has great flavor and great crunch! Paired with your protein of choice, it is a perfect Spring side dish for a holiday or every day!
Keyword: gluten free spring salad, spring quinoa salad, naturally gluten free side dish, Lemon Honey Vinaigrette
Servings: 4servings
Author: Healthy Gluten-free Family
Ingredients
Spring Quinoa Salad
2cupscooked quinoa *
1cupchopped broccoli cut into 1/4 - 1/2 inch pieces
1cupchopped asparaguscut into 1/2 - 1 inch pieces
1cupchopped snap peascut into 1/2 inch pieces
1cupchopped radishsliced thin and cut into 1/4 - 1/2 inch pieces
½cupcrumbled fetamore or less to taste
1-2 tablespoonsfresh chopped parsleymore or less to taste
1/2 - 1tablespoon chopped chivesmore or less to taste
Lemon Honey Vinaigrette
¼cupextra virgin olive oil
¼cup fresh lemon juice
3tablespoonshoney
½teaspoonkosher salt
¼teaspoondijon mustard
Instructions
Quinoa: If you haven't already cooked the quinoa, combine 2/3 cup quinoa and 2/3 cup water in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil. Immediately reduce heat, cover and simmer for 15 minutes or until liquid is absorbed. Remove from heat and set aside. Fluff with a fork after 5 minutes. Can be made a day or two ahead.
Blanch the Broccoli and Asparagus: Bring a small pot of water to a boil. Salt the water. Add chopped broccoli and asparagus and let boil 3-5 minutes until bright green and tender crisp. (the longer you boil them, the softer they will be) Remove from heat and pour into a collander or strainer as you would pasta, run cold water over the veggies to stop them from cooking. Set aside.
Make the Lemon Honey Vinaigrette: Whisk together all ingredients until well combined. Can be made ahead but bring to room temperature and give a good shake or stir.
Assemble: In a large bowl combine cooked quinoa, blanched broccoli and asparagus, chopped snap peas, radish, feta and vinaigrette. Add fresh herbs and toss one more time. Serve and enjoy!
Making ahead/ Storage: Keeps well in the refrigerator for several days though as always, best when fresh! If making ahead and want to be super fresh, make the quinoa and prep vegetables and dressing, then assemble last minute.
Notes
*To make quinoa I follow a simple ratio of 1 cup quinoa: 1 cup water. Add quinoa and water to a medium saucepan, bring to a boil, cover with a lid, lower temperature to simmer and let simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand for 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork. This will give approximately 4 cups quinoa so you will have a bit extra for another meal.*For exactly 2 cups quinoa, use 2/3 cup quinoa and 2/3 cup water, following directions above.*Quinoa can be made up to several days ahead.
Hi! My name is Karen, and I’m the mom in our Healthy Gluten-Free Family. My posts and pictures here and on Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook and Twitter are labors of love that allow me to share a very personal journey with you, one our family has taken together — learning, experimenting and sharing how to raise a healthy happy gluten-free family. Read more ...
Thanks for this recipe! We added roasted brussel sprouts, which added a nice touch.