Kale Quinoa Salad

Being a person of strict dietary needs, and also a person suffering from extreme paranoia towards the hands of food service workers (they are obvs lying to me about the gluten content in that dish...) I am limited to a select number of restaurants to eat at. And when I say I am limited, I mean that I only have a slight panic attack at certain places because I have already eaten there before and not died, as opposed to new restaurants where I have a full on -I feel something happening to me already even though all I've had is the water- kinda of anxiety attack.

Then, I basically order the same thing every time because a) it was good and b) because maybe the other type of salad has taken a bath in wheat grass, and they won't tell me about it.

Moral of the story: everyone is out to get me, according to me.

One of these "safe" dishes at a  "safe-ish" restaurant in town is the kale quinoa salad at this place. It is a kale salad (obviously) with a corn and quinoa salsa situation, then topped with avocado, goat cheese, grilled chicken, and a cilantro vinaigrette.  Every time I go and order this salad, I think to myself how incredibly easy it would be to make at home Really, its the simplest thing. So a few months ago, (yes, months) I finally got down to it.

I made it with a more of a romaine/kale blend rather then just straight up kale, because it just felt right to do it that way. Plus double up on the avocados, because avocados are life.

A little something you may not know about me yet, although I'm sure I have mentioned in on here at some point in time, because are there really any secrets left in out relationship? But that secret is that I majorly suck at making salad dressings. Honestly, its the easiest things that are the hardest for me to do. Someday I'll tell you the story about how I managed to make a beautiful chocolate torte but then in the same day somehow managed to butcher mac and chess from a box. (this was in the pre-gluten free days) 

I guess I don't have to tell you that later, because I just told it to you now.

So, here is the cilantro lime vinaigrette dressing recipe that I used for this salad. Believe me, if I tried to come up with it on my own it would be all wrong. I dunno what's wrong with me sometimes.

P.S. in the salad pictured, I substituted a chopped yellow bell pepper for the corn. Because I don't eat corn, and they are both yellow. So...ya.

 | click recipe for printable link |

Enjoy! xoxox