Warm Quinoa Salad with Edamame & Tarragon
When it comes to weight loss programs and flat belly diets,  it’s hard to find one that doesn’t include Quinoa.  If you know me, you know I was not a fan of quinoa and never jumped aboard the bandwagon…. until I started doing some research on the benefits. Here’s the short list: Quinoa is one of the most protein-rich foods out there and is a complete protein containing all nine essential amino acids,  Quinoa contains almost twice as much fiber as most other grains,  Quinoa contains Iron, Quinoa is rich in magnesium which helps to relax blood vessels and thereby to alleviate migraines, Quinoa is high in Riboflavin (B2) which  improves energy metabolism within brain and muscle cells and is known to help create proper energy production in cells.
While it is, indeed, packed with nutrients, fiber and awesome, energizing clean carbs none of that matters if you won’t eat it because you don’t like the taste. As a Personal Trainer and fitness professional,  I knew I had to add it to my diet and had  to encourage our private training clients and  group personal training  members to include it in theirs so,  I made it my mission to hunt down some tasty quinoa recipes .
This is one of my absolute favorites. I Â make all 8 servings to have a quick, tasty, energizing serving of clean carbs ready for the week.
Serves 8:Â
Ingredients:
1 cup quinoa,
2 cups vegetable broth
2 cups frozen shelled edamame, thawed (10 ounces)
1 tablespoon freshly grated lemon zest
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon or 2 teaspoons dried
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup drained and diced jarred roasted red peppers, (3 ounces)
1/4 cup chopped walnuts, preferably toasted
Directions:
- Toast quinoa in a dry skillet over medium heat, stirring often, until it becomes aromatic and begins to crackle, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a fine sieve and rinse thoroughly.
- Meanwhile, bring broth to a boil in a medium saucepan over high heat. Add the quinoa and return to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to a simmer and cook gently for 8 minutes.
- Remove the lid and, without disturbing the quinoa, add edamame.
- Cover and continue to cook until the edamame and quinoa are tender, 7 to 8 minutes longer.
- Drain any remaining water, if necessary.
- Whisk lemon zest and juice, oil, tarragon and salt in a large bowl.
- Add peppers and the quinoa mixture.
- Toss to combine. Divide into 8 servings and top with walnuts.
Exchanges  per serving:   2 Breads, 17g Protein, 3 fats
MORE FROM FAT LOSS U:
How To Prepare 15 Healthy Meals In Under 60 Minutes
 The Secret To Eating More and Losing WeightÂ
Hearing from our readers is the best part of my day. Leave a comment below.
I look forward to helping you feel 10 years younger !!
Dianne Villano, THE Fitness & Transformation Expert For YOUR Over 50 body
P.S. Have you met Pattie, our Member Of The Month August 2016 , the over 60 Hard Charger who was looking to drop a few pounds and look her best for her high school reunion? Read about her Weight Loss Program Results HERE
[…] If you want to get a little fancier, use my favorite  Quinoi Recipe for weight loss. […]
Appreciating the hard work you put into your blog and detailed information you provide. It’s nice to come across a blog every once in a while that isn’t the same unwanted rehashed material. Fantastic read! I’ve bookmarked your site and I’m including your RSS feeds to my Google account.
Hola! I’ve been following your weblog for a while now and finally got the bravery to go ahead and give you a shout out from Lubbock Texas! Just wanted to say keep up the great job!
Do you mind if I quote a couple of your articles as long as I provide credit and sources back to your blog? My website is in the exact same area of interest as yours and my visitors would genuinely benefit from a lot of the information you provide here. Please let me know if this ok with you. Appreciate it!
Sure thing. I am happy you enjoyed it
My spouse and I absolutely love your blog and find nearly all of your post’s to be just what I’m looking for. Would you offer guest writers to write content to suit your needs? I wouldn’t mind publishing a post or elaborating on many of the subjects you write regarding here. Again, awesome blog!
So happy you find it useful. By all means, always looking for guest bloggers.
Great post, thank you!
Well written piece that answered a lot of questions I’ve had. Thanks.
Happy to help
I’m extremely impressed with your writing abilities and also with the structure for your blog. This recipe sounds great.
Keep up the excellent posts