Plum Quinoa Kale Salad

Don't settle for boring salads! This Plum Quinoa Kale Salad is packed with flavors and textures that will make this your new favorite salad. The salad has a bed of kale, topped with soft quinoa, crunchy and flavorful walnuts and sweet plums and has a simple honey vinaigrette to bring all of the flavors together.

I love a good salad but I am notoriously picky about lettuce. Truthfully it's that I don't like plain 'ole lettuce. People say it has no taste, but to me, it is a very distinct taste that I don't enjoy for salads. I like it for lettuce wraps, but if I'm going to enjoy a salad, I prefer a bolder lettuce option.

I knew I wanted the plum to be the star of this quinoa kale salad. I have been waiting (not so patiently) for plums to be in season around here. I practically squealed when we saw them at the grocery store finally. When they're in season, plums can be really sweet, so I knew I needed to make sure there was some balance to this salad. I chose kale for the base of the salad to help balance out the sweetness of the plum and the homemade salad dressing.

This salad really was all about balance. The sweetness in the plums balanced by the spicy bold flavor of the kale, the crunch of the walnuts balanced by the softness of the goat cheese and quinoa, all brought together by the balanced flavor of honey vinaigrette.

When I started making my own salad dressings, I started liking salads even more. There's something kind of sacred to me about a homemade dressing. Salad dressings are so simple and easy to make and once you realize that, it's hard to go back to bottled dressings.

This recipe pairs perfectly with Pan Seared Chicken Thighs or Peach Balsamic Chicken!

Ready to make your own Plum Quinoa Kale Salad? Scroll down for the recipe!

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Plum Quinoa Kale Salad

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Total Time: 5 minutes

Don't settle for boring salads! This Plum Quinoa Kale Salad is packed with flavors and textures that will make this your new favorite salad. The salad has a bed of kale, topped with soft quinoa, crunchy and flavorful walnuts and sweet plums and has a simple honey vinaigrette to bring all of the flavors together.

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Ingredients

• 1 ½ cups of shredded/chopped kale
• ½ cup cooked quinoa, cooled
• ½ cup chopped walnuts
• ½ cup crumbled goat cheese
• 2 plums, sliced

Honey Vinaigrette

• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon honey

Instructions

1. Cook quinoa according to package instructions. Allow to cool.
2. Slice plum in half, around the pit. Then twist the plum halves to separate the halves. (see notes)
3. In a salad bowl, place kale, quinoa, walnuts, goat cheese and plums.
4. Mix together olive oil, vinegar and honey in a mason jar or small bowl.
5. Pour dressing over salad and toss to coat with dressing.

Notes

If your plum is not quite ripe, it may be tough to separate. If that happens, you may have to just slice the plum around the pit.

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This salad is perfect any time of year that plums are in season (mid to late summer through early fall). You can easily substitute another in-season fruit when out of season, too.