Make Ahead

Quinoa Salad with Hazelnuts, Apple, and Dried Cranberries

June 20, 2012
4.6
27 Ratings
Photo by James Ransom
  • Prep time 45 minutes
  • Cook time 40 minutes
  • Serves 4
Author Notes

While pregnant with my little girl, I was on a quest to find a great quinoa salad; after much tinkering, I came up with this. I love this salad because I usually have every ingredient on hand. If I don't have hazelnuts, I add almonds instead. No apples? Pears! No cranberries? Raisins! It's a fairly forgiving and flexible recipe. I recommend using good quality dried cranberries. Craisins work but they tend to turn the salad a pinkish hue after a few hours, and I find they're too sweet. —darksideofthespoon

Test Kitchen Notes

WHO: Darksideofthespoon is a an ex-pastry chef married to a chef -- needless to say, her family is well-fed. They live in snowy Canada.
WHAT: Autumn's nutty, herby answer to quinoa salad.
HOW: Cook your onion and celery until just-soft, then toss with your quinoa, cranberries, apple, lemon, hazelnut oil, and toasted hazelnuts.
WHY WE LOVE IT: We love how thoughtful darksideofthespoon's quinoa salad is: from the just-cooking-through of the onion and celery, to the skinning of the hazelnuts, to the hazelnut oil finish. This might be the perfect brown bag lunch -- or side dish at an elegant autumn dinner party. —The Editors

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • 1 cup quinoa, rinsed well
  • 1 1/2 cups water, for quinoa
  • 1 tablespoon of olive oil
  • 1 small onion, finely diced
  • 2 stalks of celery, finely diced
  • 1 cup hazelnuts, toasted, de-skinned and chopped
  • 1 bunch (about 5 to 6) green onions, chopped (green parts only)
  • 1/2 cup dried cranberries, chopped * see note
  • 1 bunch flat leaf parsley, thoroughly rinsed and chopped
  • 1 gala apple (really, any kind of apple will do)
  • 1 large lemon, juiced
  • Generous drizzle of any kind of oil (I like hazelnut)
  • Fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Directions
  1. Preheat your oven to 325° F and toast your hazelnuts for about 7 to 10 minutes. Let them cool completely. You should begin to hear their skins crackle while cooling; this is a good sign!
  2. Meanwhile, cook your quinoa. Importantly, rinse it well! Boil the water with a pinch of salt, and add your rinsed quinoa. Turn your stove down to medium-low and let it cook for roughly 15 minutes, or until the water is absorbed. Fluff quinoa with a fork, and let it cool in the fridge.
  3. Going back to the cooled, toasted hazelnuts; remove the skins. Chop the hazelnuts up, leaving them in large pieces.
  4. Preheat a skillet with 1 tablespoon of oil and soften your finely chopped onion and celery. Season with a pinch of salt and pepper to taste. Try not to brown them, 5 to 7 minutes on medium—low heat should do the trick. Set aside in a large salad bowl.
  5. Rinse your parsley well and chop it finely followed by your dried cranberries and green onions. Add all this to the onion and celery mixture.
  6. Core and dice the apple, put your apple chunks in the bowl with the other ingredients. Squeeze the entire lemon over the apple to season the salad and prevent the apple from turning brown.
  7. Add your quinoa and hazelnuts to the mixture, drizzle with the oil. Add salt and pepper to taste. Season with more lemon juice if you like.
  8. Mix well and cool completely. Allow the flavors to meld for 20 minutes before serving!

See what other Food52ers are saying.

  • stefanie stewart
    stefanie stewart
  • Allison Christian Hanner
    Allison Christian Hanner
  • Anna Harutyunyan
    Anna Harutyunyan
  • VVV03
    VVV03
  • Gabby Stewart
    Gabby Stewart

77 Reviews

FGROMANI July 11, 2022
😍
 
LadyR September 11, 2021

Dear Back of the Spoon

I am also in Canada (Toronto area). The Food52 mention of snow caught my eye. Readers south of the 49th might put a finger on a globe at New York City and run finger slightly to the left (west) and they will see how far south our Toronto part of Canada area is. In Alberta you are MUCH farther North.

I have never eaten quinoa but plan on trying your interesting recipe. I make homemade candied various nuts including hazelnuts and store in my pantry.

I thought you might enjoy this Farm Apple recipe from one of my manuscripts.

Lady R

===

=No Ordinary Fall Farm Raw Apple Bruschetta"

After a family trip to the Apple farm where you can fill your own basket, prepare for when you get home to make an amazing Raw Crunchy Apple Bruschetta.

Before you leave home put a Brie wheel on the counter so it will be malleable when you get home. Cut it in half and half again and again, using a wetted thin blade knife until you get equal size slices.

Pick up a fresh small French bread baguette on the way home. Use a serrated bread knife to slice on the diagonal. Smear with a compound butter coin from your frozen reserve. Maybe choose citrus or even jerk. (From my upcoming ms: © Lady Ralston's Compound Butter "Coin Reserve" ~ because Butter makes it Better. A different kind of currency...) to be published next year.

Top the compound butter coin with a piece of Brie and pop in a preheated 350 F oven on a sheet pan on top rack for just minutes. Watch the Brie melt just a little.

Remove the diagonal bread slices and add mounded strips of large side box grater Apple (your favourite) to each baguette tapas with melted Brie slice, and salt the apple to draw the juices. Just as you serve drizzle with my Special Date Syrup.

This is a great addition to a fruit and cheese charcuterie board. Such an easy Fall fresh Apple cheese bruschetta treat.

You might like to spritz-marinate the apples using Bacardi (Puerto Rico) Black Rum just when you are preparing to eat right away. Or you could drizzle the mounded raw apples with my Citrus Beurre Blanc.

ALTERNATE: Substitute fresh picked homegrown beefsteak tomatoes, red or green and choose burrata cheese balls cut in half instead of Brie. Use loads of fresh ground peppercorns and popped fried capers, whole or crushed, bottled in brine. Scatter fresh picked delicate oregano petals from the garden or balcony pot.

===

Google: Capers are the green, unripened flower buds of the caper bush, also known as Flinders rose. ... Those are actually the fruit of the caper bush—the result of a bud left intact and allowed to develop into a flower, and eventually fruit. Caper berries can be pickled and used like pickles or olives.

Capers are also a fish.

===

Another alternate: Add instead of apple, a paper thin slice of a small raw peeled kohlrabi on top of melted Norwegian light Jarlsberg cheese. And top the tapas with a Bosc pear cut in brunoise.

Typically I don't buy anything categorized as light, but this cheese is wonderful and I use it often. Spritz with Fiero when ready to serve. And add a bit of minced homemade candied citrus rind from your pantry sugar jar.

Compliments of manuscript in progress:

© Lady Ralston's Canadian Contessa Amuse Bouche Hors D'Ouvres Collection ~ a Bite of this and a Nibble of that...
 
stefanie S. December 21, 2020
This is really excellent, and such a great base to add in your own favorites. I didn't get too hung up on the hazelnuts. I quickly toasted them up in a skillet and rubbed the skins off in a tea towel lightly, not wanting to rub off too much of the lovely oils. They turned out beautiful. I used lots of lemon juice and the zest, adjusted the seasoning. So Yum!
 
NXL March 28, 2020
This is a great, flavorful salad. I'd be careful with the nut oil use as they tend to be very strong and overwhelm the other ingredients.
 
Vowlry October 22, 2019
I made this to take for work lunches and added chickpeas for some extra heartiness and apple cider vinegar for a bit more zip, absolutely delicious! Tangy, sweet, sour, crunchy, chewy and filling - happy lunch!
 
Michelle M. July 24, 2019
Followed the recipe exactly and it was REALLY good!! Perfect alone as a meal in itself or as a side dish for dinner.
 
CM November 27, 2018
Hazelnuts don't need any help being delicious, but I felt that there was still something very much missing from this recipe. I made it exactly as specified and wanted more zing -- a bit more acid and a lot more flavor all around. Off the top of my head, I'd recommend including lemon zest, more green onion, and... something from the spice rack?
 
Emily October 11, 2018
This is a great recipe that I have made several times! It is a hit as an autumnal side dish. I normally used unsweetened dried cherries.
 
Allison C. August 6, 2018
So good as a side with any meat and so healthy! I use tart dried cherries instead of cranberries and everyone loves it!
 
Shrinkrap June 23, 2018
How far ahead can I make this? Can it be served room temperature?
 
Anna H. June 23, 2018
Oh Lord! This was to die for!!! Made it in about 45 min. This was the most delicious salad ever! With a choice of protein and solo on it's own! Unbelievably good! Thank you for the wonderful receipe. Truly a winner!
 
Mary K. April 8, 2018
I substituted (because it's what was on hand...) fresh pears for apples, and toasted pecans for hazelnuts, also tossed in some edamame, and cubed beets.....! Quinoa is wonderful as a salad. Thank you !!
 
VVV03 November 12, 2017
Tasty dish, but I have to disagree with anyone who says it's easy or quick. I suppose that is true if you have a sous chef to do all your prep and clean up work. But otherwise, very labor intensive. It's a typical tasty vegetarian meal to me -- takes a lot of work to get to the flavor. Long live animal fat is all I have to say. (but it was tasty. Not knocking the dish, but give yourself a couple of hours and a good attitude to get it done.)
 
Candy November 20, 2017
To cut down on prep work, Trader Joe’s has already toasted hazelnuts or sub in another toasted almonds, which are easy to find. As others have said, walnuts and pecans work well too and they have no skins. Use the food processor to chop onion and celery. I’ve even bought the sliced celery from the salad bar, given them a chop or two with the knife and thrown them in.
 
Gammy January 4, 2019
Thanks for the tip on Trader Joe's toasted hazelnuts. One issue was that although I rubbed and rubbed, the skins for the most part stayed on the nuts, so we got a bit of extra fiber. Timing was spot on... about 45 minutes until all was combined and in the fridge cooling.
 
Gabby S. November 8, 2017
I am making this for a school event and want to avoid nuts. Any suggestions for crunchy replacement?
 
ghainskom November 8, 2017
Pan roastef sunflower seeds?
 
patrick November 8, 2017
savory granola!
 
koc November 9, 2017
Jicama or water chestnuts would be good crunch replacements.
 
Andy H. November 5, 2017
How is the acid component in this salad? It seems pretty light on balance and might need a touch more acid. Has anyone experimented with that?
 
patrick November 8, 2017
i like to add lemon zest to increase the lemon aspect
 
Lucy May 29, 2017
Amazing. I subbed barley, slivered almonds, added dried tart cherries and raisins....so forgiving and so delicious. Thank you!!!!
 
SophieCatt April 21, 2017
WOW. This is awesome!
 
Patty February 27, 2017
Whoa, this is SUPER good. And I was not the only one enamored: I made it for a party and got rave reviews from everybody. I went very light on the oil and found the lemony taste wonderful. Such a great, delicate combination of flavors.
 
niemx February 2, 2017
Delicious! I made this for a potluck and got positive reviews. I did make a few adjustments: I used only half a bunch of parsley (it seemed like a lot of parsley!), used raisins instead of cranberries, used 4 green onions, and forgot to wash the quinoa.

With only half the amount of parsley used, I think the green onions were too strong. After preparing the salad, I thought it could use some more sweetness so I added probably about an extra third cup of chopped raisins. As the comments will tell you, this is a flexible and forgiving salad. It was my first time toasting and deskinning hazelnuts, and I found it a little annoying, so if I'm a little lazier I might use walnuts instead. But they were a nice touch and add a unique nutty flavor to the dish.

Remember to add salt!
 
Yayita January 29, 2017
This is a very forgiving and versatile dish. I modified since I didn't have all of the needed ingredients and even then it was a good salad. I omitted the green onions as I didn't have any, added dried pineapple strips since I didn't have enough dried cranberries, and substituted the lemon for sherry vinegar as I ran out of lemons. The one thing I wish I would have done more throughly is wash my quinoa as my quinoa was slightly bitter. Do not skip soaking and washing your quinoa! And when you do wash it, wash it until the water runs clear; something I didn't do and now my salad has a slight bitterness. Thankfully the sweet cranberries and apples offset this but I can only imagine how much better it would be without that bitterness.
 
patrick November 8, 2016
ive made this recipe twice, once without celery/onion and once with, the latter was much better. read more about how mine came out here- http://wp.me/p7IPNM-Bt
 
Chris O. July 21, 2016
to Claire de la Lune -- I like jicama or water chestnuts for crunch.
 
Melissa May 15, 2016
just love this receipe. it's prfect and well balance. thanks for sharing
 
Betsy March 5, 2016
FABULOUS! This is my new go-to salad, lunch or dinner. I put in the basics, but then add other things I have in the fridge - red pepper, dried blueberries. I have found that the better the evoo, the better the salad, finished with a touch of fleur de Campagne. Thanks so much!
 
Claire D. February 26, 2016
from a recent incident where i hadn't even ingested it but was just sitting down, peeling a lot, i found out i'm super allergic to celery. does this salad need that bit of crunch and if so, what could I substitute for it that would work well? or could I just leave it out, no harm done? Thanks!!
 
koc February 26, 2016
My daughter doesn't like the taste of celery so I always leave it out of this recipe. We don't miss it and think it's delicious! And the nuts add crunch.
 
barbra R. January 31, 2016
this was easy, flexible and delicious! i used a mix of hazelnut and pignoli to get the right amount of nuts; dried sour cherries, as i didn't have cranberries; a few less scallions, as that's what we had in the garden, and xvoo. everyone loved it!
 
Dave M. January 3, 2016
Made this tonight for tomorrow lunch. All good. Hazelnuts are time consuming, and may opt for toasted pecans next time around. Will add some grilled chix for more protein.
 
Alexis M. November 20, 2015
Ok what's the trick with the hazelnuts? Because the skins of mine are refusing to come off.
 
Dave M. January 3, 2016
try shaking them in a glass jar! Gets a lot of the skins off.
 
Wendy K. July 4, 2016
Pull them out of the oven, and immediately put them in the center of a thick dish towel. Gather the edges up so that the nuts are enclosed in the towel. Now just rigorously massage the hazelnuts through the towel. This rubs them together and gets the skins off. Not all the skins will come off -- that's ok. I've found roasted and skinned hazelnuts at Trader Joe's.
 
Bevi November 2, 2015
Really Delicious! I used a whole box of white quinoa (Ancient Harvest) and increased all the other ingredients accordingly. In place of hazelnuts I used toasted slivered almonds. Thompson or a medley of raisins are a reasonable substitute, but the next time I made this salad I used real dried cranberries, and they were terrific. This is actually on our Thanksgiving 2015 menu.
 
Blythe H. September 24, 2015
This was so yummy! Very simple, elegant, and not very time consuming, either. It makes a hefty amount, too. I had a total of 8 people to feed last night for a party, and since the recipe says it serves 4, I doubled the recipe. Maybe it was because I was serving it as one of two appetizers, but there ended up being a good amount of leftovers - even after a few people got seconds. However, I'm not complaining! This means more leftovers for my husband to take to school for lunch. Perfect!
 
Maureen September 13, 2015
Maureen Siegel
To Alma Mahler: I use slivered almonds instead of hazelnuts. Very good!
 
Whats4Dinner September 13, 2015
Holy crap that's good!!! And I haven't even added the nuts yet! I also have so many subs I think it's barely recognizable but still crazy good!! Definitely a keeper and, as usual, I'll have to double the quantities so that I have enough to go around....
 
Alma M. August 25, 2015
All thumbs up. Real good. The hazelnuts were a bit of a pain, so I might try a replacement next time. I thought this would be taste more...virtuous or bland than it did. This salad will feature prominently in my lunch rotation going forward.
 
betty888 July 14, 2015
I just finished making this and decided to write the review while I am waiting for the flavors to meld - I have to distract myself, otherwise I'd be sitting cross-legged on the floor with the entire bowl in my lap, devouring the whole thing. I used walnuts and golden raisins, as that's what I had on hand, and it is really delicious. Can't wait to make this for my mom on my next trip home - she will love it!
 
Shelley C. June 19, 2015
Excellent! I used cashews and raisins instead of cranberries and hazelnuts only because I didn't have any
 
Tomasz R. May 23, 2015
Just ate it, absolutely delicious! PS. 'Allow the flavors to meld for 20 minutes before serving!' are you kidding me?! Couldn't wait!
 
Trine M. December 11, 2014
Looks delicious, fresh and healthy! Sadly quinoa is one of the most excpensive things to buy up here in Norway. And you always find them in very small portions in the supermarked.
 
Rebecca C. November 20, 2014
i agree with Somia - a very forgiving recipe. in fact, I made it as a warm entree pilaf. Putting in the dried cranberries, raw apples, and parsley last, cooking quinoa in veggie broth, replacing hazelnuts with toasted pecans, adding roasted roots vegetables (parsnips, radishes, carrots, cipollini onion tossed w/olive oil, s&p, fresh sage & thyme). worked out real nice. thanks for the idea, dark side!
 
Somia October 15, 2014
I am so glad I went ahead and tried this even though I did not have cranberries, parsley or green onions. This recipe is very forgiving! I used dried herbs and tart dried cherries in place of those missing ingredients. Very tasty.
 
MaryPat October 15, 2014
Aside from the added sugar, what is difference between Craisins and dried Cranberries? Can't find the latter anywhere.
 
koc June 23, 2014
Delicious! I didn't have hazelnuts/hazelnut oil so I used roasted almonds and olive oil and it was still fantastic. Can't wait to try it again with hazelnuts. Thanks!
 
Butterfield B. June 8, 2014
loved this just wish that hazelnuts weren't such a project because I love them so.
 
Jenny May 17, 2014
I made this and my entire family absolutely adored it, used sesame oil, added fried onion bits, honey, and corn sooo good thank you!!
 
omegatop March 19, 2014
This entire salad (2.53 lbs or 40.48 oz) comes in at 2107 calories, if you use only two tablespoons of hazelnut oil. A 4 ounce serving is 208 calories.
 
Ned S. February 8, 2014
So delicious! It taste even better then next day. Every ingredient counts and adds its own unique taste to the salad.
 
Brooks P. February 4, 2014
Thanks for this. How long does it keep in refrigerator?
 
Alison M. January 28, 2014
Just made this for much week's supply of healthy lunches, but used dates instead of cranberry and curly parsley to get that bitter edge. Absolutely delicious.
 
Joan M. January 9, 2014
do you have full nutritional values for this anywhere?
 
ghainskom December 18, 2013
First time having quinoa for me and this is the recipe I chose for that. No regrets. It's a keeper!
 
EmilyC November 20, 2013
Made this over the weekend and loved it! Great recipe!
 
KitchenKim October 31, 2013
Instead of using cranberries, I swap it with roasted butternut squash and eliminate the celery.
 
darksideofthespoon November 5, 2013
Yum!
 
Maureen October 30, 2013
moalana

Made this last night. WOW! Best quinoa recipe ever. I had to restrain myself from having a third helping! Love, love, love it.
 
darksideofthespoon November 5, 2013
That's awesome! At least it's healthy, third helpings are encouraged. Hehe.
 
khollander October 30, 2013
Wow, I made this salad -- the ingredients are a perfect balance of crunch and nuttiness with a touch of sweetness and it looks great on a plate.
 
darksideofthespoon November 5, 2013
Thank you!
 
ljhutchins October 29, 2013
I made this over the weekend for a party and brought the left overs home. It is so good, I am debating making another batch tonight just to have on hand for an easy lunch or dinner for the week.
 
darksideofthespoon October 29, 2013
I make huge batches when I know I'm going to have a busy week. It's easy for my toddler to eat, too. Really happy to know you like it!
 
Aunt D. October 27, 2013
Will definitely be making this one!!!
 
darksideofthespoon October 29, 2013
Let me know if you do! :)
 
Marie F. October 24, 2013
Delicious!! I didn't have hazelnuts so I used roasted almonds instead. My new favorite quinoa salad!!
 
darksideofthespoon October 25, 2013
I'm so flattered and glad you like it!
 
ChefJune October 23, 2013
just copied this. Think I'll make it tonight. Congrats on the WC win!
 
darksideofthespoon October 23, 2013
Thank you! I hope you do, let me know what you think. :)
 
Lizthechef August 20, 2013
Great flavors and lovely presentation -
 
darksideofthespoon August 21, 2013
Thanks Lizthechef! :)
 
creamtea February 28, 2013
This is beautiful!
 
darksideofthespoon February 28, 2013
Thank you! :)