I spent the majority of my Saturday evening in the kitchen. I know I am 25 going on 50 – it’s cool.

I needed a vegetarian protein dish to bring to the cookout so I whipped up the gluten-free Quinoa salad with Buckwheat and Cranberries from Diet, Dessert, and Dogs.

Making it the night before was a grand idea. 1.) I had time to workout this morning before leaving for the party. 2.)  The flavors had plenty of time to blend together.

Overall, the salad turned out great and I ended up really liking it, although my family probably thinks I’m a crazy health nut. I made a few changes to the recipe based on what veggies I had on hand. Here’s what I ended up using:

1 cup dry quinoa

1/2 c. dry buckwheat groats (kasha)

3 c. water

1/2 cup chopped walnuts, lightly toasted

1/2 cup dried cranberries

1/4 cup sunflower seeds, toasted

1/4 cup chopped red onions

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

Dressing:

2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

2 Tbsp. flax or hemp oil

3-4 Tbsp. agave nectar

juice of 1/2-1 lemon (to taste)

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp. ground cumin

1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg

I also put the rhubarb I received from the Fruit Guys to good use by making a vegan version of the recipe they sent.

Of course I had to taste test them last night and this morning- just to make sure they were okay to bring to my fam. Turns out, the vegan version was a success – they were super moist and semi-chewy. In addition, the rhubarb was no longer sour after cooking and the combo of strawberry and orange complimented the rhubarb perfectly.

Vegan Strawberry Orange Rhubarb Muffins

And, the highlight of the cookout: Mom’s Watergate Salad.

People call it different names – Pistachio salad, Hawaiian Surprise, Pistachio Delight, and Green Stuff. It’s a Kraft recipe from the 1970′s with pistachio pudding mix, canned pineapple, cool whip, marshmallows, and nuts. It’s not the healthiest treat on the planet, but it’s a pot-luck classic and I’ve been in love with it since I was a kid.

Obviously my mom makes the best version. Here’s the recipe she follows.

Since I gave a little love to my mom in my last post, I thought it’d only be appropriate to highlight my mamacita’s mom, aka Nanny.

Some of my best traveling memories include the road trips where Nanny was involved. She would always let me lean my head on her to nap. Let’s just say that nanny boobs are the ultimate pillows!! Too bad she didn’t pass down the well endowed genes.

Although I was a little bummed that Olive didn’t bring me breakfast in bed, I had a great time today spending time with some of the best mom’s in the world – my mom, nanny, and sister!!

I hope you enjoyed your Mother’s Day as well.

-Brittany

Tagged as: Holiday, Mother's Day, Quinoa salad with Buckwheat and Cranberries, Vegan Strawberry Orange Rhubarb Muffins, watergate salad