Quinoa • Roasted Chili Corn • Jicama • Carrots • Cilantro • Buttermilk-Poblano Mint Dressing
Salad recipe by Pillsbury United Waite House youth and chef coach Jorge Guzman from Petite León.
La Unida Salad by Pillsbury United Waite House Youth
United on all fronts!
Maireni-Daniel, Keilyn, Estefany, Vanessa and Mochny have known each other, through Waite House, for most of their lives. “We’re like siblings and we wanted to create a salad that is fresh, healthy and reminds us of our time together, plus how we’ve all come together during these difficult times.” With Chef Coach Jorge’s keen understanding of Latin American flavors, together this team brings it all together- united on all fronts.
La Unida Salad
With Buttermilk-Poblano Mint Dressing
Makes 8 (generous 1-cup) servings
Salad Ingredients
- ¾ cup uncooked quinoa
- 1 ½ cups corn, sliced from the cob or frozen (thawed)
- 1 Tbsp. olive oil
- 1 tsp. chili powder
- ¼ tsp. salt
- 1 ½ cups peeled and chopped jicama
- 1 ½ cups coarsely grated or matchstick carrots
- ½ cup chopped fresh cilantro
- 6 cups spinach greens
Dressing Ingredients
- 3 roasted poblano chiles (see Cook’s Note below) or 1 (10 oz.) can whole roasted green chiles, drained
- 1 small serrano chile, halved, seeded
- ¾ cup fresh mint leaves
- 2 green onions, coarsely chopped
- ½ large clove garlic
- 1 Tbsp. fresh lime juice
- 1 tsp. grated lime peel
- ¾ cup buttermilk
- 2 Tbsp. olive oil
- ½ tsp. salt
Toppers
- Crumbled cotija cheese
- Lime wedges
Directions
- Cook quinoa according to package directions. Let cool.
- Heat over to 400˚F. Toss corn with oil, chili powder, and salt until well coated. Spread on parchment-lined baking sheet. Roast for 20 to 25 minutes, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned. Let cool.
- Meanwhile, in a large bowl mix quinoa and remaining salad ingredients, except the greens. Add roasted corn.
- To make dressing, Place roasted poblanos, serrano chile, mint, green onion, garlic, lime juice and peel in blender; process until smooth. Add buttermilk. With the blender running, slowly stream in olive oil, processing until thick and smooth. Season with salt to taste.
- Stir half the dressing into the salad mixture; toss to coat well. Arrange salad greens on plates. Spoon salad mixture on top; drizzle with remaining dressing and garnish with crumbled cheese and lime wedges.
Cook's Note
Roast poblano chiles over an open flame or under the broiler for about 10 minutes, turning once, until the skin is charred and blistered evenly around. Loosely cover chiles and allow to steam for about 5 minutes. Pull or rub off as much of the blistered loose skin as possible. Remove stems and seeds.
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