Quinoa Salad with Pistachios

As I was saying, my acupuncturist is also big into nutrition and she and I often talk about our vegful kitchen experiments. Since Traditional Chinese Medicine views food as a living medicine that is part and parcel of one's qi harmony, or disharmony as often has it, much of what we in the West know of as healthful eating is reiterated: for most people's dispositions, TCM suggests avoiding processed foods, choosing fresh, whole foods, limiting the sugar, dairy, wheat gluten and alcohol. There are some folksy notions about certain kinds of meat nourishing one's particular qi deficiencies, otherwise it's quite vegetarian friendly, and my practitioners have always been flexible and respectful of my refusal to eat chicken liver, in spite of some good it's supposed to be for one persnickety meridian.

So she recently self-published a cookbook- for her women clients in particular.. those of us overly yin and in need of foods to fire up some yang to keep the energy moving productively.
This one sounded good, and even though I was out of the parsley it calls for, the combination of mint and cilantro is a revelation.. one I'll be playing with much more in the future.

Apparently the green onion, pistachios and quinoa boost yang while the cilantro and mint are harmonizing influences (I think by harmonizing it is meant spleen and liver qi... one of them is always lagging behind the other it seems).

1 1/2 c water
2/3 c uncooked quinoa
1/2 t sea salt
1/3 c goji unsweetened goji berries, quartered
1/3 c golden raisins
1/3 c shelled, dry roasted pistachios
1/4 thinly sliced green onions
1/4 c fresh chopped cilantro
2 T fresh chopped mint
1/4 t black pepper

(Vinaigrette)
1/2 t grated lime rind
3 T fresh lime juice
2 T mirin
1 T olive oil
1/4 t sea salt
1/4 t ground cumin
1/4 t ground coriander
1/4 t paprika

Combine water, quinoa and salt in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Reserve 3 tablespoons of the remaining liquid and drain off the rest. Combine quinoa and next 7 ingredients in a large bowl and set aside.

To prepare the vinaigrette, combine reserved 3 T cooking liquid, lime rind, and remaining ingredients in a bowl, stirring well with a whisk. Pour vinaigrette over quinoa mixture, and toss well to coat.