Spinach-Quinoa Salad with Cherries and Almonds

My pic is a little bit lackluster,
so I include the recipe-pic from the
Vegetarian Times as well:



This is a good salad recipe, particularly so for picnics. I brought some in to work for a friend of mine, and she whipped up a batch of it for herself just a few days later, she liked it that much. I would've liked to try this with fresh cherries, but I had no desire to spend money on a cherry-pitter that I'd only ever use once. And ye old method of biting and spitting out the seeds seemed somehow... unsanitary... for a salad that I was sharing with others. But I bet this would be a damn foxy salad with some fresh cherries.

Mmmm. Cherries.

INGREDIENTS:

Salad

• 1/4 c. sliced almonds, toasted


• 1.5 c. quinoa, rinsed and drained


• 2 c. spinach leaves, cut into thin slivers


• 2 c. fresh cherries, pitted and halved, or 1 c. dried cherries, chopped (I used the latter)


• 1 cucumber, peeled, seeded and cut into 1/3-inch dice (about 1 1/2 cups)


• 1 15-oz. can chickpeas, rinsed and drained


• 1 small red onion, finely chopped (about 1/2 cup)

Dressing

• 1/4 c. plain soy yogurt


• 3 T. olive oil


• 2 T. fresh lemon juice


• 2 cloves garlic, minced

Directions

Prepare quinoa according to your liking (I cook mine in my rice-cooker, with a 2:1 ration of water to quinoa). Allow to cool.

Toss together all salad ingredients. In a separate bowl, whisk together yogurt, olive oil, lemon juice and garlic. Pour over salad, and toss to coat. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Chill 30 minutes to allow flavors to develop, then serve.

(Original recipe from the Vegetarian Times)