Red Quinoa with Papaya & Mango Salsa and Arugala

Before going on this elimination diet I had never had quinoa. I didn't even really know how to pronounce it (think keen-wa). When I was only dairy-free a friend who was dairy- and soy-free told me she tried to look at it as an opportunity to explore new foods rather than a time of "Oh, I can't have this (and this and this and this)." I've tried to keep that mindset and we have tried a lot of new foods. Quinoa is one of my new favorites. And after a friend told me that she had it for breakfast I realized it's even more versatile than I thought!

I can't take credit for thinking up the idea for this quinoa salad. We were at Trader Joe's and they were sampling this recipe and it was so delicious we decided we would have to make it at home. And, hell must've froze over because Glenn said he wanted salmon to go with it. Salmon?!??! For the record, I love salmon but Glenn doesn't care for fish much at all and salmon has always been at the top of his I-dislike-fish list. So, when he said we should pair salmon with the quinoa salad I thought he was joking. Alas, he wasn't. And he actually liked it. (Yay!) Beanie ate a lot of salmon too. She kept asking for more and eventually ate a fair amount of the quinoa salad too.

Red Quinoa with Papaya & Mango Salsa and Arugala

• Red quinoa, prepared as per directions on box and chilled
• Fire roasted papaya & mango salsa (you could make your own with papaya, mango, chiles, cilantro, onions and lime but we just bought the prepared one at Trader Joe's. It's super yummy.)
• Arugala, chopped

To be honest, I didn't really measure out the ingredients. I put the quinoa in a bowl and stirred in the salsa & arugala until there was enough for my liking.

This is one of my new favorite cool salads & I'm so glad there are leftovers!