Parmesan Spinach Quinoa

This is a delicious quinoa side dish accented with the flavors of garlic, pine nuts and lemon. Since I blogged about quinoa and greens earlier this week, I thought I’d share a recipe that includes both of these ingredients. This is an adaptation of one of the first quinoa recipes …

Ingredients

• 1 cup quinoa, rinsed
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 cup pine nuts or 1/4 cup raw sunflower nuts
• 1 clove garlic, peeled, smashed, kept whole (to be removed)
• 2 cups fresh baby spinach, chopped
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Directions

1. In a large saucepan, bring water, salt and quinoa to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover and cook until quinoa is tender and water has been absorbed, about 15 minutes, set aside.
2. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the pine nuts or sunflower nuts and cook until lightly toasted, about 2 minutes. Add the garlic and cook just until it starts to brown, about 2 minutes. Remove garlic and discard. Stir in the cooked quinoa and spinach. Heat until the spinach wilts. Stir in the lemon juice and all but a pinch of the cheese. Stir until the cheese has melted. Serve sprinkled with the remaining cheese.