Warm Garbanzo & Quinoa Salad

This is a recipe I found in Women’s Health magazine. The original recipe calls for putting the warm quinoa/garbanzo/veggie mixture on top of fresh spinach, but I decided that I preferred to wilt the spinach into the mixture. It makes it easier to eat and the spinach gets the flavoring of the dressing more this way.

The Ingredients:
1 1/2 tsp chopped garlic
1 small zucchini, quartered and sliced
2 carrots, quartered and sliced
1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper
2 cups canned garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 cup (packed) chopped scallions
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons white-wine vinegar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup cooked quinoa (cooked in vegetable broth)
4 cups fresh baby spinach leaves

The Instructions:
1. Coat a saute’ pan with cooking spray and heat to medium-high. Add garlic, zucchini, carrots and bell pepper. Saute’ until softened, about 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Add beans and saute’ until heated through.

2. In a food processor, puree scallions, gradually adding oil, vinegar, salt and black pepper to taste. Process to a thick consistency.

3. Add scallion mixture and quinoa to saute’ pan. Add spinach and toss until spinach has wilted slightly.

Serves 4.