Quinoa w/ Beets, Apples & Walnuts

It's apple season! The weather is getting cooler, and it's almost time to pick apples here in New Jersey.

I love using apples in salads (and apple desserts are my favorite).
But I am still very much in the beet business (you would think my side job is a beet farmer!).

Beets are always in season, you can find them all winter long, and they grow beautifully in my garden from June to October. I had a bumper crop this year and I have enough still growing in the garden to last me thru November.

This salad is pretty and very easy to put together, especially if you roast the beets the day before.

Here's how:

1 cup of cooked quinoa, cooled
1 Granny Smith apple, diced (leave peel on for nice green color)
2 red beets + 1 yellow beet (roast 400F for an hour, then peel when cool)
handful of toasted walnuts
handful of snipped chives (or scallions)

Dressing:
1 tbsp of honey
3 tbsp of white balsamic vinegar
3 tbsp of walnut oil
sea salt & pepper

Whisk up the dressing with a fork, and set aside.

Dice 1 red roasted beet and add to the quinoa, walnuts, diced apple and some scallions/chives (don't bother adding in the yellow beets, they will turn red. Save the yellow one for the plate).

Add the dressing to the quinoa mixture and toss. Taste for seasonings.

Slice a roasted red & yellow beet into thin slices and overlap them in a nice pattern on your platter.

Mound the quinoa salad into the center for the plate and garnish with fresh mint, parsley or chives.

Serve and enjoy!