Roasted Strawberry and Asparagus Quinoa Salad

I recently came across the concept of roasting strawberries. The idea of roasting strawberries came as a bit of a surprise as I had never even considered it. I like roasting vegetables because it concentrates the flavour and there was no reason that it could not do the same for strawberries. I have recently been enjoying quinoa salads and I thought that a savoury roasted strawberry quinoa salad would be a good place to start experimenting with roasted strawberries. Since strawberries and asparagus generally in season together I thought that adding asparagus would be fitting. Balsamic vinegar goes well with strawberries and I thought that roasting the strawberries in balsamic vinegar would be nice. I also figured that the strawberry juices combined with the balsamic vinegar would make a nice base for a dressing. The roasted strawberry and asparagus quinoa salad turned out to be really tasty! I really enjoyed the roasted strawberries and they were full of flavour. The balsamic dressing went really well with the roasted strawberries and the garlic added a nice bite. I can't wait to use roasted strawberries again.

Ingredients:
1 cup quinoa
2 cups water
1 cup strawberries (sliced)
1/2 pound asparagus (cut into bite sized pieces)
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup chickpeas
1/4 cup feta (crumbled)
1 handful pecans (chopped)
1 clove garlic (chopped)
1 teaspoon honey
1 teaspoon mustard

Directions:
1. Simmer the quinoa in the water until the water is absorbed, about 20 minutes.
2. Toss the strawberries and asparagus in the balsamic vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper.
3. Roast the strawberries and asparagus in a preheated 400F oven until caramelized, about 10-20 minutes.
4. Assemble the salad.
5. Mix the juices left in the roasting pan with the garlic, honey and mustard in a small bowl.
6. Pour the dressing onto the salad and toss to coat.

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