Did I tell you, guys, I stopped eating any bread products? Even Ezekiel ones?! Just occasionally I would eat half a toast with peanut butter. It happened unintentionally. By eating more whole foods like grains, seeds, vegetables and fruits, I had no room left for bread. And yes, I did see a change in my body definition.
This blueberry quinoa salad is one of my new whole food meals, perfect for hot summer days. This is all you might need for lunch or dinner, well maybe kale blueberry salad and blueberry strawberry salsa as well. It keeps well dressed in the fridge for 3 – 4 days. I try to cook extra quinoa every time for leftovers. To freeze or to make salads like this one.
The salad consists of hearty quinoa, sweet blueberries, creamy avocado, toasted pecans and drizzled with fresh, easy and to-die-for Lime Basil Dressing. Lime and not lemon fitted this recipe really well. The salad is high in protein, complex carbs and healthy (!) fats. You will be full with one serving, just like with my chicken quinoa kale salad with grilled peach.
Speaking about whole food and feeling full. My oldest boy is attending camp this week that includes dinner. So far, he had nachos, white pasta with Caesar salad and white rice with meatballs. I have to say he is not shy and loves to eat. So, he ate, I’m sure. Well, every night he comes home hungry and ends up eating second dinner at 9 PM. This is a perfect example how whole foods rich in fiber and nutrients leave us feeling satisfied longer than the same foods stripped of those nutrients during a manufacturing process.
I live in a blueberry country, with miles and miles of blueberry fields surrounded by lakes and mountains. It is simply breathtaking scenery! Every summer I drive to stock up on blueberries directly from farmers numerous times. We also freeze them for winter months. Our local blueberries are juicy and sweet. Always go for local, you will taste the difference.
Unlike blueberries, pecans come from my local Costco warehouse => my healthy Costco shopping list. I do love any toasted nuts and my method of toasting is easy – do it on a stove top. Toasted pecans and tangy Lime Basil Dressing pair really well with blueberries in this quinoa salad. Enjoy!
PrintBlueberry Quinoa Salad
Blueberry Quinoa Salad Recipe with avocado, toasted pecans and homemade lime basil dressing. Perfect for summer and keeps well refrigerated for a few days.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Total Time: 15 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
Ingredients
- 2 cups quinoa, cooked
- 1 cup blueberries
- 2 large avocados, diced
- 1 cup pecans
Lime Basil Dressing:
- 1 tbsp olive oil, extra virgin
- 1 tbsp maple syrup
- 1/2 large lime, juice of
- 3 tbsp basil, finely chopped
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
Instructions
- In a large bowl, add quinoa, blueberries and avocados.
- In a small skillet, toast pecans on low-medium heat until lightly brown, about 5 minutes. Stir frequently and watch closely not to burn. Transfer to a bowl with other ingredients.
- In a small bowl, whisk together Lime Basil Dressing ingredients, pour over the salad and gently stir to combine. Serve cold.
Store: Refrigerate covered for up to 3 days.
Notes
Inspired by Cookin Canuck recipe.
Did you make this recipe? Please give it a star rating in the comments.
Looks yummy…
1) I don’t have limes , can I use lemon instead?
2) frozen blueberries? Don’t have fresh.
★★★★★
1. Yes.
2. Mmmm, they are more delicate than fresh after thawing. I would stir salad w/o them first and then sprinkle on top and give just 12- stirs. And be ready for a bit blueberry coloured salad which is not a big deal.:)
This was delicious! I’ve decided to go “Meatless Monday” and came across this yesterday when searching recipes with blueberries. I was happy to see that this had all ingredients I had on hand- including basil from my garden. I brought some to work for lunch and wished I had brought more! The only change I made was to add just a touch more maple syrup. This would be a great salad to bring to a party, too.
★★★★★
Yay. Glad you enjoyed.
Going to add chopped spinach and cucumbers for a heartier salad, thanks for the inspiration
Sounds great! Anything goes. You are very welcome.:)
Love this blueberrry quinoa avocado salad
★★★★★
So happy to hear, Chris! I wish blueberries were in season 9 months out of the year.:)
Hi, I saw you reposted this recipe on Instagram earlier this week. I’m going to attempt to make this but I’m not a fan of avocado, can you recommend any substitutions for avocados?
Hi Lecretia. Yes, sure. Grape tomatoes would be great. Or cucumbers.
Perfect u love both. Will give this a try. Thank you
Hey, i know this is an old post, but i just want to clarify something before i attempt this recipe. 2 cups of quinoa, cooked…do you mean 2 cups of dry quinoa that you then cook, or two cups of already cooked quinoa?
Already cooked, measured after cooking.
Thank you!
Thank you for sharing this recipe! It’s my first time cooking quinoa but surely won’t be the last. I used dry basil since I didn’t have fresh but it still tasted awesome. This salad is a keeper!!
Was looking forward to trying this, since I’ve never tried Quinoa before. I might have made a few mistakes. I took easy way out with chopping the basil up by using a mini food processor…so that didn’t let the basil spread out as much I think. Other issues could have been my ingredients, but the tastes just didn’t seem to blend well together. It wasn’t really a hit in our house so its not a keeper. Thanks for all the recipes you have here though, I’ve got a few more that I want to try. The first one of this site was a homerun (Thai Chicken Spaghetti Squash Bowl ). For me it’s back to the drawing board with Quinoa.
You are welcome.:) I hope you grow on quinoa – it’s really awesome!!!
Your recipes always look so great! I’ve spent half of the morning pinning them. I share your spaghetti squash boat recipe a lot. Hopefully I’ll get a chance to try out some of your others this weekend. My mouth is watering!
Thank you so much, Nancy! I stare at my photos too much too often and think I have a lot to work on. Well, life is long or maybe not…
This looks so incredible. I really want to make it but where I live is impossible to find any blueberries. What could be a good substitute? FYI cranberries also unavailable…
You could substitute blueberries with fresh blackberries, raspberries or even strawberries.:)
Love strawberries, will give this a try. Thank you!
a lime and basil dressing sounds so delicious.. this just looks perfect for summer. defintiely will be recreating this in my kitchen, thanks olena!
Such a clean pic,very healthy and tasty salad indeed
Thank you, Harini!
This looks delicious 🙂 Such simple and clean ingredients that we can all feel good about. Thanks for another great recipe! Pinning this now!
Thanks Vanessa and thanks for pinning!
This looks so delicious, Olena! Love a good quinoa salad, and that basil lime dressing sounds amazing!
I’m in love with that dressing! Somehow lime worked better than lemon in this recipe. Thank you, Denise!
I love BC blueberries, too. I stock our freezer with them every year… I like your salad – so easy, right? Ive been eating quinoa and avocado + something random thrown in for like 2 weeks straight, lol… strips of beef, grilled corn, spinach… whatever i have. I would not have thought of blueberries, though, I will need to keep this in mind. 🙂 take care.
Where do you buy BC blueberries? On the way from BC vacation?!:) I never knew about them while living in Calgary. Mind you we barely left Calgary back then because it was so expensive to go anywhere. Lol.
superstore always has them. but the best way is to pick them up from the farmers as you drive from the Tsawassen ferry through Surrey…but I always miss the season.
I envy you living in blueberry country with the mountains. I live in South Georgia, USA and it is pecan country. I don’t know what you pay for pecans at Costco, but you might want to try South Georgia Pecan Company, Valdosta, GA. They ship gifts and wholesale pecans, as well as other nuts. Just google it. I store mine in the freezer and they last for a few years. I grew up eating pecans from trees my grandfather planted. Those trees are still standing, still producing after almost 100 years. Sadly, our family does not own the farm anymore, so I have to buy pecans. I surely want to make this salad.
I don’t know myself what I pay for pecans at Costco LOL. I just grab them. I will check out the company you recommended. Thank you! I wish I could visit my grandma’s house…You are so blessed that way. Thanks for stopping by.