Summer Quinoa Salad with Fennel, Squash, Peas, Leeks and Corn

There is something mind numbingly peaceful about shucking peas.

The tug of the string, the snap of the casing, the pop, pop, pop of sweet little peas hitting the bowl.   (Or, the floor.)

Feisty little things. 

I'm heading out of town again.   Visiting the family in New Hampshire.     The weather report is predicting mid 70s and sunny.    A vacation from the overly balmy 98 we are dealing with in North Carolina today.  

I told myself I'd get up early and hit the trail before the sun rose and the cicadas woke up.   (Didn't happen.)

What did happen is a sweat soaked mid-day romp through the woods, fending off gnats and breathing in warm jasmine coated air.   Sunscreen dripping from my red skin.   All the more sweeter for those little gnats.   They like me.  

I think they might like this salad also.   It's sweet.   And cool.

Given our pending escape, I did a swing through the fridge to clear out the 'forgotten'.  I was rewarded with peas, corn on the cob, leeks, baby fennel and some yellow squash.  

They came together to produce a light and fragrant summer salad when combined with quinoa.   If you've stopped by here before, you know how much I love quinoa.  

The corn and freshly shucked peas add crisp sweetness and color; the fennel and basil in the dressing add fragrance.   The leeks provide a little earthiness which together with the olive oil and garlic give this salad a little more depth.   This recipe makes a huge bowl of summer salad.    Divvy it up into sides or eat as a main if you are looking for a light vegetarian dinner.

Cool and sweet and strangely calming.

Do you do this?   The fridge sweep before traveling?    

Summer Quinoa Salad with Fennel, Squash, Peas, Leeks and Corn


Ingredients
1 cup quinoa, rinsed
2 cups water
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 leeks, green and white parts only, halved and sliced
1 cup freshly shucked peas*
3 ears corn, kernels removed
4 small yellow squash, chopped
1 baby fennel bulb, sliced thin and chopped

Preparation
Prepare the quinoa.   In a medium pot, add 1 cup rinsed quinoa to 2 cups of water.   Bring to a boil.   Cover and simmer for 25 minutes.   Remove from heat and set aside.

While quinoa is cooking, prepare vegetables.   In a large skillet, heat olive oil on medium low heat.   Add leeks and saute for 5 minutes until softened.    Stir peas and corn into leeks and saute for another 3 - 5 minutes.    Raise heat to medium and add in squash and fennel.    Saute for another 3 - 4 minutes until crisp tender.     Remove vegetable mixture from heat and prepare dressing (below).

Combine cooled quinoa, vegetables and dressing in large bowl.    Use all of the dressing for a wetter salad.   If you prefer drier, use less.  

Basil Fennel Vinaigrette Dressing


Ingredients
1/4 cup olive oil
1/8 cup balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon dijon mustard
2 cloves garlic, finely diced
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil, loosely packed
1 tablespoon chopped fennel fronds (the dill looking part)
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 - 5 turns cracked pepper

Preparation
Add all ingredients to small bowl and whisk together until combined.  

*Fresh peas add a special sweetness and crispness to this salad, but you could also substitute with frozen.

Lake House Salad with Italian Balsamic Vinaigrette

Coppertone.   Burning coals.   Oreo cookies.

Smells like Memorial Day Weekend.

Lathered in lotions to kick start our summer tans, decked out in neon bathing suits, reading the latest issue of Glamour.    If I'm honest, throw in some big hair and way too long fingernails.   True children of the 80s.

First weekend of summer.

At the lake in New Hampshire, hanging out at the kitchen counter.  Feet freshly rinsed clean from sand.   Wrapped in towels to keep from soaking the furniture.

With the Indy 500 whizzing by in the background, we dangle our feet from stools and take breaks from the sun.    Hot dogs with mustard straight from the grill.    Salads doused in Italian dressing.   Oreos for dessert.   Oreos for a snack.   Oreos... just because we could.

Sweatshirts in the evening.   Cool lake air.   Baseball with our neighbors.  Rummy on the porch.   Movies on the couch.    Sleeping like little babies.

(These days, it's a little less about the oreos and a little more about the salads and the sunscreen.)   

What is it about holidays that bring back memories from our childhood?   What smells do you equate with summer? 

Lake House Salad
serves 6 - 8


Ingredients
Head of lettuce, rinsed, rough chopped
2 cups baby spinach
1 large tomato, chopped
1 cup snow peas, chopped
6 - 8 mushrooms, sliced
1/4 large red onion, diced
1/2 cucumber, chopped

Preparation
Add everything to a large bowl and mix.   Toss with vinaigrette when ready to serve.

*******************

Italian Balsamic Vinaigrette


Ingredients
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
2 teaspoons honey
salt and pepper to taste

Preparation
Add all ingredients to small bowl and whisk until combined.   Salt and pepper to taste.   Serve with Summer Salad or any other salad that you prefer!

Sweet and Sour Cucumber Dill Salad

It is hot.  

Like ridiculously crazy insane hot.

Yes, I live in North Carolina.   Yes, I realize that it gets hot in summer.

But seriously... really?   A heat index of 112 is just not fun.   I have been running outside periodically all afternoon dumping glasses of ice water on my wilting herbs on our front porch.    My cat, who normally loves to dart out the door after me when I leave the house, isn't.   She just stands there and sniffs the air and then turns around and goes back inside to sit on a vent.  

I'm really not complaining.  I love heat.   I actually love humidity.   I love summer.  

Except for today.  

I'm thinking about what to whip up for dinner tonight and the thought of cooking makes me a little sick to my stomach.    But I can slice up some cucumbers and splash on some light dressing without breaking a sweat.    Easy.  Fresh.   Just enough effort to make me a little sleepy again on this Sunday afternoon, but not enough to make me want to take a nap.   I'd say that's a success.

Cucumber Dill Salad.   A regular at my summer table growing up.   It was our hot weather side dish.   Perfect with anything from the grill and super refreshing all by itself.

I found this recipe on Epicurious and only made a couple of changes by reducing the sugar and adding onion.    Just like when I was little!

Sweet and Sour Cucumbers with Fresh Dill

2 hot house cucumbers sliced as thinly as you can get them while leaving them in tact
1 tablespoon salt

1/2 small onion, thinly sliced (optional)

1/2 cup white vinegar
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh dill
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

After slicing cucumbers, sprinkle with salt and then let drain in colander for at least 15 minutes.  I usually let this go about a half hour.   When time is up, squeeze excess water out without ruining the cucumber (don't squeeze too hard!)

Make your dressing by combining the vinegar, fresh dill, sugar and pepper.   Taste and adjust accordingly.  

Mix dressing with cucumbers and onion and let sit at least 15 minutes before serving.   Serve chilled!

Enjoy and stay cool!