Radicchio salad with quinoa, cranberries and pistachios

 Radicchio salad with quinoa, cranberries and pistachios

Radicchio salad with quinoa, cranberries and pistachios is a delicious mix of healthy and tasty ingredients. A salad, also excellent as a single dish, with a quick and easy recipe that provides the balanced nutrients for a light meal. 

INGREDIENTS

• 1 head of red radicchio di Chioggia
• 2 tablespoons cranberries
• 150 g of quinoa
• 2 tablespoons shelled pistachios
• 1 teaspoon of traditional balsamic vinegar
• Parmesan cheese flakes
• 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
• salt
• pepper

Radicchio salad with quinoa, cranberries and pistachios is a dish that features a delicious combination of ingredients and textures. Perfect for a light but balanced meal with flavor.

The base of the dish is radicchio di Chioggia, a salad with a rounded and compact head, with red leaves with a pleasantly bitter taste and a crunchy texture. And then the quinoa, a pseudocereal of Andean origin very nutritious and low-calorie, gluten-free. Dehydrated cranberries recall the color of radicchio and contrast its bitterness with a slightly sour sweetness. Pistachios add a point of crunch and delicacy of flavor. The slivers of parmesan give the right savory note. Not to mention the balsamic vinegar which we recommend, as always, DOP, learn more about the differences in our in depth study Balsamic vinegar DOP characteristics and pairings. 

There are many proposals for fruit and vegetable salads that we suggest and that allow you to stay light with taste, in every season. Among our favorites are surely Grapefruit and avocado salad, Winter salad and Orange, pistachio and fennel salad. 

Clean the radicchio di Chioggia, removing the base and outer leaves. Cut into lozenges, not too large. Boil the quinoa according to the instructions on the package. Drain and cool under running water.

Toast the pistachios in a non-stick pan without fat. Transfer the quinoa to a bowl along with the radicchio, toasted and coarsely chopped pistachios, and blueberries and mix. In a small bowl, whisk the salt and vinegar very vigorously with a fork. Gradually add the oil, continuing to mix until the mixture is smooth.  

Use it to dress the salad. Complete with a few shavings of Parmesan cheese. Serve immediately.