I have been enjoying quinoa ever since I discovered it and one of my favorite ways to enjoy it is in a simple salad. I tend to add some beans to the quinoa followed by some vegetables, often roasted, a nut and then I finish it off with a dressing and some herbs. I recently came across a quinoa chickpea salad on The Whole Kitchen that both followed that basic outline and looked really good. The recipe highlighted cinnamon and I immediatly thought of Moroccan cuisine which often uses complex spice mixtures including cinnamon. Moroccan spiced roasted carrots also happened to be on my to try list so I decided to merge the two ideas and make a Moroccan roasted carrot and chickpea quinoa salad. Of course, I made my own Moroccan spice blend and to ensure though flavouring, I tossed the carrots in some before roasting them, I cooked the quinoa with some and finally I mixed some into the dressing. The roasted carrot and chickpea quinoa salad turned out very nicely! I particularly enjoyed the spice blend and how it both accentuated the sweeter aspects of the salad in the form of the carrots and the raisins and also how it added a nice bit of heat. This salad would make a nice side for many Moroccan dishes and it also goes well by itself.
Moroccan Roasted Carrot and Chickpea Quinoa Salad
ingredients
- 4 large carrots (peeled and slices 1/4 inch thick)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon moroccan spice blend
- 1/2 cup red quinoa
- 1/2 cup white quinoa
- 2 cups water (or vegetable broth)
- 2 teaspoons moroccan spice blend
- 1 (15 ounce) can chickpeas (drained and rinsed) (or 1 1/2 cups cooked beans, from 1/2 cup dry)
- 1/4 cup red onion (diced)
- 1/4 cup raisins
- 1/4 cup pine nuts (toasted)
- 1 handful parsley (chopped)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 lemon (zest and juice)
- 1 teaspoon moroccan spice blend
- salt and pepper to taste
directions
- Toss the carrots in the olive oil along with the spices.
- Arrange the carrots in a single layer on a baking sheet.
- Roast in a preheated 400F/200C oven until tender, about 20-30 minutes, turning them once in the middle.
- Simmer the quinoa in the water along with the spices until the water is absorbed, about 20 minutes.
- Mix the carrots, quinoa, chickpeas, onion, raisins, pine nuts and parsley in a bowl.
- Mix the olive oil, lemon juice and zest, moroccan spice blend, salt and pepper in a small bowl and then toss the salad in it.
Moroccan Spice Blend
ingredients
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
directions
- Mix Everything.
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Gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous! I adore Morrocan flavors and an always looking for new ways for work them in. Definitely trying this one. Many thanks!
What a delightful blend of flavors! I do so love toasted pine nuts and they go beautifully with this salad. I've been a fan of roasted carrots ever since I tried them in a teensy Italian place tucked away in North Beach, San Francisco. Your spice blend will take them over the top!
This looks really good! I'm always looking for creative grain, protein, vegetable combos to make on Sundays for lunch during the week. I may do this this weekend!
Terrific! Those flavors are just so delightful!
Cheers,
Rosa
Healthy and tasty..yum!
I love quinoa….Quinoa salad with roasted carrot and chcik pea-delicious.
This sounds marvelous! Pine nuts are an all time fav.
What a lovely salad! That would be perfect for a lunch at school.
Kevin – thanks so much for taking the inspiration from my salad and running with it! I'm so honored! And your version looks absolutely delicious. I've been thinking about making this one again – I really loved the spiced/roasted carrots in the salad.
The toasted pine nuts int there won me over, Kevin!!!
Oh this dish is packed with my favorite stuff!! It looks pretty healthy, too! I will have to try this one of these days. 🙂
Mmm I still have some Moroccan-spiced carrots in my fridge. I think I foresee an upcoming menu item!
Oh man, I totally have (almost) all those ingredients in my house already! Now I really want to make this.
So many great spices! All that sweet heat is perfect for dinner.
Me encanta la comida marroquÃ. Esta receta te ha quedado excelente. Un saludo
This looks really really amazing!!
I recently discovered how amazing roasted carrots are. They sound like the perfect accompaniment to this wonderful-looking dish!
Fantastic – love those flavours, and so visually appealing, too!
What a pretty salad and I love the flavors you have combined! I will definitely bookmark this one and try it!
I'm gluten free and always looking for new ways to enjoy quinoa. this looks so delish I can't wait to add it in to my recipes. Thanks!
There are few things I love more than Middle Eastern/Moroccan food. Especially when the meal will use up that massive bag of carrots I always have in the fridge! Looks delicious.
Also, I'm hosting the BSI this week and the secret ingredient is carrots. This dish would be perfect (if you want to submit it)!
I like the use of the white and red quinoa together. Nicely done!
I need to get with it and use more quinoa, and this is a gorgeous example of how to use it!
This salad is both visually beautiful and nutritionally fantastic.
Love quinoa, nutritious and very pretty salad.
This salad will fit perfectly into a menu of tagine dishes I'm putting together for a cooking class next week. Thanks!
That looks beautiful! I've been trying to use it as a side, but we've not had much luck with quinoa in our houshold. I am not sure if it is a texture issue or just my cooking it. I do plan to give it one more attempt…I found a bread recipe with quinoa!
Creative usage of difference grains, and man the colors are great. Thanks
I've been enjoying quinoa lately too, this looks unbelieveably flavorful Kevin!
very very lovely! love the spice blend here.
Going to have to give this a go! Combines almost all my favourite ingredients 🙂 Thanks for the veggie recipe. Yum.
Ooo I love quinoa and you've created something unique and tasty here!
Kevin, this has quickly become one of my favorite dishes. The lemon juice and fresh parsley really bring the flavors together nicely. May I suggest toasting the spice blend…the mixture takes on a nice chestnut color and the incense-like aroma fills the kitchen intensely…THIS IS A GREAT DISH! You never disappoint, keep up the good work!
Joe Kluk, New Lenox, Illinois: Toasting the spices first would really bring out their flavour! Great tip!
Just made this this weekend and it was amazing! Especially after the second day. The flavors were so layered and lovely….I am a huge fan of this site!! THANKS!!!
Hey Kevin, just discovered your blog a few weeks ago and now it is my favourite recipe site. All of the recipes we've cooked so far have turned out great and i'd do them again – tonight we had this salad and it rocked !! Keep up the good work.
Cheers, Susan (Adelaide, Aust.)
Tried this salad a few weeks ago and it was delicious! I had it warmed on a baby spinach bed the next day, which was also great. I did make one small change and used dried cranberries instead of raisins, cause that's what I had on hand. Thanks for a great recipe!
so gorgeous! I have made this 6 times now! I hope it would be ok with you to re-post this recipe on my blog with credits linking back to you.
This is one of my new faves! I substituted sweet potatos for carrots just because that's what I had on hand and they worked quite well. Thanks for the great recipe.
hey glad you came out of the closet! this moroccan quinoa salad was excellent!
thanks.
patrice…kent ct.
This salad is delicious. Thank you for the recipe;)
So glad I found your web site ! Your recipes look so appetizing ……and so healthful ! My first try , the Moroccan Roasted Carrot Quinoa Salad is a WINNER !!! Thank you !!
P.S. I also have a closet sized kitchen , but am determined that that will not stop me from doing some great cuisine (like yours ) !!!
Anonymous: Glad you enjoyed the salad! Having a small kitchen cannot hold you back from making some pretty amazing food! 🙂
This is now one of our favorite recipes, and the first of yours that I've tried. Looking forward to trying some others! I didn't bother to toast the pine nuts, and I eliminated the lat two tbsp oil when I toss the salad, but otherwise follow the recipe. Delicious!
Just made this…so delicious…but, I used my own recipe for the dressing.
This sounds delish and looks so pretty too!
Made this today — had to do just a little bit of improvising because I didn't have cardamom or coriander in my spice cabinet, but my family absolutely loved it! The flavor was incredible!