In the spring of 1976, my best friend and I headed to San Francisco for the weekend in her dear old VW bug.  We had 4 days off from college, and knew that we could make it.  A friend of a friend had a house that we could stay at, and that’s about all we knew.  The weekend was fascinating and the people living in the house were so kind and welcoming.  We ate at the Acme Café, and for the first time in my life, I ate Quinoa.  I didn’t eat it again until it became mainstream about 10 years ago. I think we all welcomed it as a change from the ever-present couscous.

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Ingredients:

1½ c quinoa

3 c vegetable or chicken stock (in a pinch, use water + 1 ½ t salt)

Juice of 2 lemons

½ c canola oil

4 cloves garlic

½ t black pepper

1 bunch green onions, washed, trimmed and chopped

2 bunches parsley, washed and minced – you should have about 2 cups (not packed)

15 mint leaves, washed and minced, or 2T dried

1 English cucumber, washed & ends trimmed off, cut into 4 lengthwise and then crosswise into ¼” pcs

1 tub grape tomatoes, washed and quartered, or five 1 ½ – 2” tomatoes, chopped – the trick is to have more tomato than juice!

Directions:

Combine quinoa & stock in a pot; bring to a boil

Turn heat to low, cover, and cook for 15 minutes, as you would rice. Grains should be translucent.

Let cool for 5 minutes and fluff with a fork.

Put on a plate or a cookie sheet – uncovered – in the fridge to cool.While the quinoa is cooking and cooling, prep all the vegetables.  Put them in a large bowl.

Mix dressing ingredients in a small bowl.

Drizzle over the vegetables and toss gently; let them marinate until the quinoa is ready.

Add the fluffed and cooled quinoa and gently mix into the vegetables, breaking apart any clumps of grain if necessary.