Smoked Salmon Quinoa

I didn't get a great picture of this, but for lunch yesterday I made a quinoa salad that turned out really well. This one had lemon, smoked salmon, fresh basil, pecans, and a little parmesan. If I made it again, I would add some fresh dill to it as well. Quinoa salads are so great because they taste spectacular cold, but are also wonderful warmed up as a side dish. And as I've said before, part of the beauty of the quinoa salad is that quinoa+basic citrus vinaigrette+just about anything=a tasty and easy meal.

Smoked Salmon Quinoa 
1 cup uncooked quinoa
2 cups water
juice of 1 lemon
olive oil
pepper
salt
3 oz smoked salmon (about the size of a deck of cards)
1/4 cup pecans, toasted
handful of fresh basil leaves, sliced into ribbons
handful fresh dill, finely chopped
handful of fresh shredded parmesan or other sharp cheese

Combine the quinoa and water in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Turn heat down to low and partially cover. Allow quinoa to cook for 15 minutes. While qunioa is cooking, make the dressing- put the lemon juice in a large bowl, add some pepper and a little salt and stir. Add some olive oil in a thin stream, stirring with a fork or a whisk to create an emulsion.  I didn't measure the oil, and you can add it to taste, but you want the dressing to be light and fresh and not too oily, so keep that in mind. Next, cut the salmon into small pieces. Be sure to look for any bones and pull them out and discard them- getting fish bones in a salad is no good at all! Toast your nuts and chop your herbs if you haven't already done so. Once the quinoa is done, mix it with the dressing in the large bowl and then add all of the other ingredients and stir. Cool in the refrigerator if you want to serve it cold or eat immediately for a tasty warm dish.
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