Quinoa Salad with Spinach, Avocado and Kidney Beans

Let me begin this post with the word PERFECTION! That is exactly what this delicious Quinoa Salad with Spinach, Avocado and Kidney beans strives for and I think it nailed it. I mean, it is everything you need to nourish your body in the same plate, and to top it off there is avocado in there. I really think that's where you achieve perfection in the kitchen. 

This is one of those recipes that make life easier in every way, it's made with simple ingredients that you can get at the farmers market or the grocery store, everything fits in a bowl which means less dirty dishes to clean, you'll have it ready in a breeze and it super loaded with all the nutrients you need in a single meal. 

Since salads don't always make for a well rounded meal, I made an extra effort to make sure that wasn't the case for this one. You'll be getting so many nutrients from all the fresh and light ingredients it contains. And to give it some substance and add to the healthy strike we are on, I threw in some quinoa, a complex carb that will keep you satiated for a while without leaving you feeling sluggish .  

Since it's an easy recipe that everyone in my family really enjoys I make it for both lunch and dinner, especially during this season and the warmer days we've been getting; it allows me to reduce my time in the kitchen without compromising our love for delicious healthy food. 

I wanted to make it interesting so I aded a bunch of colourful vegetables, made sure there were different textures and flavours, left some ingredients raw and some others go in cooked. The best part is that all this together it only adds up to a little over 300 calories and you'll be getting 12g of protein. Pretty good combo I would say! 

Whenever we think of salads, the different kinds of salad greens immediately come into our minds. And as much as I preach to all of you about eating your leafy greens, I have to say that, as cliche as it sounds, not all greens are created equal, so we need to pay close attention to what we are using. 

Without taking away the benefits that lettuce and other salad greens have, I personally prefer to include more nutrient dense greens instead, such as collards, spinach or kale. Greens salads are light and refreshing, in general they contain a good amount of vitamin A and folate but for the most part you'll be getting a lot of water from them. 

On the other hand, leafy greens are a good sources of Calcium, Potassium, fiber, vitamins C, K, A and folate. They all have slightly different nutrients so it's a good idea to switch'em up. This time, I opted for spinach, I just sauté it with olive oil and onion to enhance its flavour and add a nice creamy texture to our perfect salad!