You may or may not have heard, but last month, on February 10th, Bob Moore, a founder of Bob’s Red Mill Natural Foods, passed away at the age of 94. And I felt the need to write a post about this man who made such a remarkable difference in our food supply. Bob and Charlee Moore founded Bob’s Red Mill Natural Foods in 1978. In contrast to many of their peers, they declined offer after offer to sell to Big UltraProcessed Food, deciding eventually to become an employee-owned company. Their decision to live their values, choosing quality over quantity, paralleled a similar phenomenon happening everywhere. Annual sales reached in the range of $100 million.

Speaking personally here, Bob’s Red Mill was, for many years, one of the few sources I could rely on for high-quality grains and gluten-free products. Nowadays I can find such products in many places, but that was not true 25 years ago.

I share with you here my recipe for quinoa salad, inspired by a Bob’s Red Mill recipe that I removed years ago from a bag of Bob’s Red Mill quinoa, and then taped into my book of favorite recipes. The original recipe actually specified tri-color quinoa, but you should feel free to make it with whatever kind of quinoa you happen to have in the cabinet. 

Salad
2 cups quinoa, cooked and cooled
1 cup chickpeas, cooked (or canned and rinsed)
1/2 cup red kidney beans, cooked (or canned and rinsed)
1/2 cup frozen green peas (no need to thaw)
1 1/2 cups grape tomatoes, halved
1 1/2 cups small pickling cucumbers, diced
1 large red bell pepper, diced
1 large avocado, diced
1/2 cup green onion, minced
1/2 cup fresh mint, chopped
1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped 

Dressing
1 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
2 Tbsp. honey
1/2 cup lime juice (fresh squeezed, if available)
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 Tbsp. tamari
1 1/2 tsp. toasted sesame oil
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. black pepper

Cook the quinoa in a pot with a secure lid. Bring 3 cups of water and a pinch of salt to a boil. Add the quinoa, stir and cover. Reduce heat to low and simmer 20 minutes. Remove lid, stir, and set aside. 

Prepare the vegetables, herbs, and dressing while the quinoa cools.

In a small saucepan over medium heat, warm the vinegar and honey, stirring gently until well mixed. Remove from heat and stir in the remaining dressing ingredients (lime juice, olive oil, tamari, sesame oil).

Combine the dressing with the vegetables and herbs in a large bowl, and mix well. Add cooled quinoa, salt and pepper, and mix again. Serve chilled or at room temperature (my preference). Serves 6.