CPK Quinoa + Arugula Salad

California Pizza Kitchen recently added this salad to their menu and it's delicious! My sister and I often meet for lunch together in the city and split this with a small pizza. I wanted to try and recreate this at home.  I discovered Beth had shared the recipe so I thought I would give it a whirl!

What you will need:

For the salad:

1/2 cup cooked quinoa, cooled

8 sun-dried tomatoes in oil, cut small; plus 1 tsp. of oil from sun dried tomatoes

3 ounces of feta cheese cut into small chunks (I used feta with Mediterranean seasoning from Trader Joe's since I already had it. The flavoring really complimented the salad!)

1 1/2 cups of baby arugula leaves

1 bunch of asparagus, stalks cut off, cut in half

1 1/2 tbsp. toasted pine nuts (I used pepitas, again cause I already had it)

For the dressing:

1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

2 tbsp. red wine vinegar

1/4 tsp. of kosher salt

1/8 tsp. dried oregano leaves

A few grinds of freshly ground black pepper

Wash the quinoa and cook according to package directions. Once quinoa finishes cooking transfer to a large bowl and set aside to cool.

While quinoa is cooling, prepare the dressing. In a bowl mix together the olive oil, red wine vinegar, salt, oregano, and pepper. Mix well.

Once quinoa has cooled, add the sun dried tomatoes, sun dried tomato oil, feta cheese, and dressing to the bowl. Toss well to coat. Place bowl in fridge for 30-45 minutes.

About 20 minutes before you are ready to serve the salad, steam asparagus. Put asparagus in a large saucepan and cover just barely with water. Put over medium heat and bring it to a simmer, then lower the heat and simmer for 3-5 minutes. Asparagus  is done when you can prick it through with a fork, but still tender. Once finished cooking place on plate to cool.

While the asparagus is cooling toast the pine nuts. Since I used pepitos I skipped this step!

When ready to serve the salad, take bowl out of fridge. Mix in arugula and toss. This recipe can make two large salad servings or 4 smaller salads. Top each plate with asparagus and toasted pine nuts/pepitos. Sprinkle with freshly ground pepper.

Check out some of Beth's other recipes on her blog:
  www.bakeitmakeitwithbeth.com they all look delicious!