January 2, 2014
(last updated December 25, 2024) 
This lentil quinoa salad is so festive and perfect for winter gatherings. It’s studded with dried cranberries and apricots, as well as crispy, baked candied pecans. The salad serves a crowd and is a wonderful mix of savory and sweet. Plus, it’s nutritious and made with protein-rich vegan ingredients!
Thank you so very much for your responses to my New Year’s post. I hope that 2014 is a good year for everyone so far.
Perhaps it’s not quite forward-looking to make my first recipe of 2014 a dish I ate on Christmas day of 2013, but this last-minute quinoa salad was so tasty and easy that I have to share it with you all. It features quinoa, pecans, dried cranberries, dried apricots, lentils, parsley, and a little lemon juice. If your family members or friends are skeptical about quinoa, I guarantee that this dish will help to win them over!
I wish I’d gotten more photos, because it was really a beautiful grain salad, but I didn’t have my camera on me. Hopefully the recipe itself will suggest how colorful and varied in texture the dish is.
Lentil Quinoa Salad with Dried Cranberries, Apricots, and Candied Pecans
Author –Yields: 6 servings
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups dry quinoa (270g)
- 2 3/4 cups vegetable broth (650ml)
- 1/2 cup dry black or French lentils (100g; substitute 1 3/4 cups / 1 14.5-ounce can of cooked lentils)
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries (80g)
- 1/2 cup dried apricots, chopped (80g)
- 1 cup crispy baked vegan candied pecans (substitute raw or toasted pecan halves and pieces)
- 2/3 cup parsley, chopped (25)
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 1/2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- freshly ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
Prepare the quinoa:
- Rinse the quinoa through a fine-mesh strainer until the water runs clear. Place it in a medium-large, heavy bottomed pot, along with the vegetable broth. Bring the grain to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and and cover the pot. Simmer until the quinoa has absorbed all of the liquid, about 13 minutes. Remove the quinoa from heat and allow to rest for 5 minutes. Fluff the quinoa with a fork, re-cover, and set it aside while you proceed with the recipe.
Prepare the lentils:
- Fill another medium-sized pot with water. Bring the water to a boil. Add the lentils and boil them for 25-35 minutes, like pasta, or until they're entirely tender but not mushy. Taste a few lentils to check for doneness. Drain the lentils thoroughly.
Prepare the salad:
- Transfer the cooked quinoa, lentils, cranberries, apricots, pecans, and parsley to a large mixing bowl. Drizzle the mixture with the olive oil, lemon juice and vinegar, salt, and a few turns of black pepper. Toss the ingredients well, so that the salad is evenly dressed. Taste the salad and adjust the salt, pepper, oil, and lemon as needed. Serve or store the salad in an airtight container in the fridge for up to four days.
Notes
Leftovers will keep for up to four days in an airtight container in the fridge.
And there you have it: an easy, nutritious, and crowd-friendly dish without any fuss. I’ve historically tried some very ambitious things on Christmas (raw lasagna, shepherd’s pie, a beet and cashew cheese tart, etc.). This year I just didn’t have the inspiration to make something so ornate, but I can’t say that my contribution to the meal was any worse off. My dinner mates loved the dish, and a few of them went back for seconds. I hope you’ll enjoy it, too.
Before I go, I want to remind my readers that I am once again offering nutrition counseling services. I’ve been working with clients since early December, and I’m loving every moment. It feels wonderful to help folks find balance, free themselves from regimentation or dogma, make more nourishing food choices, and–most important–be compassionate to themselves in the realm of food. I’ve missed this kind of interpersonal work more than I can say, and I feel so lucky for the chance to practice it again.
It’s January, which means you’ll be bombarded with quite a lot of dieting and fitness “noise.” If you’d like to find a renewed commitment to health and wellness that doesn’t involve black-or-white thinking, extreme measures, or alarmism, but does involve common sense, an evidence based perspective, compassion, and joy, please feel free to email me at gena@thefullhelping.com. I’d love to share my rates, tell you more about how I work, and help you to decide if my services are right for you.
Stay warm out there, friends, and I’ll see you soon.
xo
Images courtesy of Lighter.
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Categories: Recipes,
Salads,
Side Dishes
Method: Stovetop
Ingredients: Lentils, Quinoa
Dietary Preferences: Gluten Free, Soy Free, Vegan
Recipe Features: Holidays
Method: Stovetop
Ingredients: Lentils, Quinoa
Dietary Preferences: Gluten Free, Soy Free, Vegan
Recipe Features: Holidays
Leave a Comment
Yes it is delicious, and I will make it again. Used 2 cups of lentils.
I’m planning on making a version of this for dinner tonight with some warm chunks of sweet potato, and twisting up the dressing a little bit.
Thanks for the inspiration.
That sounds amazing, Liesl!
Mmmm this salad sounds delicious =)
I love grain salads and I was just saying to my husband that it was time to make another batch of lentils. Perfect timing! ๐
Not that it needs any fussiness, love it already, but we have two butternut squash upstate from our neighbor’s garden. I bet I could stuff this into them for a dinner party!
I bet that would be delicious, Laura!
I just picked up some pecans today, this looks like a great dish to use them in!
i love the pecan and cranberry combination alot. Thanks for sharing it ๐
Thanks for reading!
ornate or not, this really does look christmassy ๐ also, i’m glad to see you are back into counseling! i think you have a wealth of info that so many people would benefit from hearing! i might be passing your info on to a friend of mine soon!
Thanks, doll! I hope that I can help your friend.
This looks like edible perfection – my exact favourite ingredients for quinoa all combined together!
It’s delicious! Glad you like ๐
Such a lovely combination and perfect for a party or family gathering, thanks!
Yum, I love nuts and dried fruit in quinoa dishes. It’s the perfect combination of textures and flavors. I find it so weird that anyone would be skeptical of quinoa. I feel like it’s such a common food now. Plus, what’s not to love?! This looks great. Simple dishes always get my vote.
Same ๐ Thanks Jenni.
Pecans and apricots sounds like a delicious idea! I often find that you don’t need extremely fussy meals to please a crowd. Often it’s just simple combinations made with joy rather than stress that are most appetizing.