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This quinoa salad is sweet, crunchy and has a little Kefir tang! It’s super healthy, gluten free and makes a quick and easy weeknight dinner!
‘Tis is the season. The season for Kefir.
At least that’s what the word on the street is. And by “word on the street” I mean the word in my house. 
And by that I mean, Mr. FFF already drinks Kefir all the time…so it’s ALWAYS the season for Kefir.
I don’t know where this is going. As usual. You understand.
Moving on.
Kefir, do you know it? It’s the smooth, cousin of yogurt and it has ALL the probiotic cultures. You know what that means?
Drink it and you will have one :), balanced digestive system. 
Like I mentioned above, the huberskerdoo has a very 🙁 digestive system about 89.97% of the time, so he drinks this stuff on the reg’.
How-ev-er, he always buys fruity flavored ones so that he can add them into his daily orange smoothie making escapades. And, yes, they are escapades.
Every time the hub-o-rama is in the kitchen making something, it’s a BIG DEAL.
The other day, while we were perusing the refrigerated aisle at Winn Dixie, I noticed that among the strawberry banana and raspberry flavors, there was a bottle of plain Lifeway Kefir.
AHA! I had a moment. 
A “kefir-it’s-not-just-for-smoothies-anymore” kind of moment.
So, I made it into the easiest, 3 ingredient dressing that you will ever make in your life.
And then I threw it (read: poured. Do not THROW your dressing unless you enjoy cleaning the ceiling) onto the EASIEST of the eas quinoa salad.
You guys. I am in <3 with this for the rest of time. As in, I would marry it if I could.
And, yes, I told Mr. FFF that.
He understood. 
Actually he didn’t. But that is neither here nor there.
Do they make wedding rings the size of grains of quinoa anyway? Things to ponder.
Just like in the Moroccan chicken skillet, You’ve got a little crunch action with some pistachios. And then there’s the mega creamy feta cheese to make sure it isn’t TOO crunchy. Crunchy like whoa.
Gotta keep those ‘stachios in line. 
Sidenote: My bag of pistachios has a mustache on the front, and it says “mustachio.” I die.
Back to quinoa salad.
The dried cherries and the Kefir pair up, do a little quinoa mambo and a little bit of sweet and tangy magic happens.
The CRUNCHY. The CREAMY. The SWEET. The TANGY. 
Oh delicious quinoa salad, you make my belly and my taste buds smile.
Ingredients
Instructions
- In a large pot, bring 2 cups of water to a boil. Once boiling, stir in the quinoa. Cover, reduce the heat to low and cook until the moisture is absorbed (about 15 mins.) Once cooked, transfer the quinoa to a[url href=http://amzn.to/1iXgTcf target=_blank rel="nofollow sponsored"]large bowland place it into the refrigerator until cooled.
- While the quinoa cooks, preheat your oven to 400 degrees and line a small baking sheet with parchment paper. Toast the pistachios in the oven until lightly golden brown, about 10-12 mins. Set aside.
- Once the quinoa has cooled, stir in the salt, chopped cherries, crumbled feta cheese and minced basil.
- Roughly chop the toasted pistachios and add them into the salad. Stir until everything is well mixed.
- To make the dressing:
- Stir the kefir and honey together in a medium, microwave- safe bowl. Microwave the mixture until the honey is melted and easily mixes into the kefir, about 30 seconds.
- Stir in the balsamic vinegar.
- Pour the dressing over the salad, mix will and DEVOUR
Recipes written and produced on Food Faith Fitness are for informational purposes only.
FOR THIS RECIPE, I RECOMMEND:
Want more Quinoa?
Grilled Mojito Chicken Quinoa Bowls
Date and Banana Quinoa Breakfast Bake
Eveline says
This recipe absolutely sounds amazing. I hope I find the time to try it this week, can’t wait! Thanks 😀
Taylor Kiser says
Thank you Eveline! Please let me know if you do try it! 😀
Amelia @ Eating Made Easy says
Kefir is one of my favorite foods, and ingredients, but I’ve never thought of using it like this! So genius. Can’t wait to make this salad for a summer picnic.
Taylor Kiser says
I hope you love this Amelia! I love Kefir too! Thanks!
cece says
Hi, this looks delicious. Does it last in the fridge for a few days or is it an eat immediately kind of salad?
Taylor Kiser says
Hi Cece! You could probably mix most of it ahead of time, but I would add the vinaigrette and the pistachios just before serving! I hope that helps! Let me know if you try it 🙂