
Balsamic Grilled Vegetables and Basil Quinoa Salad
Serves 4 with leftovers
Recipe by Just the Tip / Inspired by Veggie Belly
Here’s what I used:
For the veg:
- 2 medium/large zucchini, cut into big cubes
- 2 small/medium eggplant, cut into big cubes
- 1/2 large red onion, cut into chunks
- 1 1/2 cups cherry tomatoes
- 8 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves stripped
For the dressing:
- 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
- 6 tbsp olive oil
- 4-5 garlic cloves, grated
- salt, pepper
For the quinoa salad:
- 4 cups water
- 2 cups quinoa, rinsed
- 1/2 cup basil leaves, chopped
- 1/4-1/2 cup toasted pine nuts
- salt, pepper
Here’s what I did:
- Whisk the oil and vinegar together for the dressing and set aside.
- In a medium saucepan, bring the water up to a boil for the quinoa. Add the quinoa, and a pinch of salt, and bring back up to a boil. Once boiling, reduce heat to low, cover, and cook until the water has absorbed, about 20 minutes.
- Put the cut veggies in a large bowl and pour half of the dressing over them, tossing well. Season well with salt and pepper and preheat grill (I used my stove-top grill pan).
- Spray or wipe the grill with olive oil and grill the veggies until grill marks form and they are tender but not mushy.
- When the quinoa is cooked, toss with the second half of the balsamic dressing. Stir in the salt, pepper, pine nuts and basil.
Hi Vanessa! Which CSA do you use? I want to sign up for one for next year, but I have no idea how to choose one. This dish looks fantastic!
Hey Lia! We use Farmer Dave’s – the farm is in Dracut but they have a bunch of drop off spots, one of which is minutes from my house. I had no idea how to choose one either, so I randomly picked Dave’s because a) cute name b) really good website. I split a regular share with a friend and it’s a perfect quantity, esp. since I cook so much. Comes out to $10/week, and it’s ridiculously worth it. Maggie has a CSA too — you should ask her about it!
Hi! I want to try the quinoa but I am afraid it will either be too dry or too “healthy” tasting. How was it?