Kale and Blueberry Quinoa Bowl (low FODMAP)

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Low Fodmap Salad Kale Blueberry Quinoa

One of my favourite times of year is when fresh blueberries are in season. I'd happily eat blueberries for breakfast, lunch and dinner. While eating only blueberries isn't really feasible from a nutrition standpoint (the body can't survive on blueberries alone!), there are ways to include blueberries into your meals, in non-traditional ways.

This Kale and Blueberry Quinoa Bowl is a delicious (and nutrient-packed) way to include these berries at lunch and dinner. Beyond the blueberries, it also has other great ingredients that will keep you ultra satisfied. Packed with fresh kale, crisp red peppers, cool cucumbers, crunchy walnuts, creamy goat cheese and nutty quinoa this salad is sure to not disappoint. 

For those of you with Irritable Bowel Syndrome and following the Low FODMAP diet, this Kale and Blueberry Quinoa Bowl is free from excess FODMAPs. Check out the note below the 'method' section for some details on how to keep this recipe safe in terms of FODMAPs. For those of you without IBS and not following the Low FODMAP diet, don't worry, this is still a great salad. 

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INGREDIENTS

Serves 4

DRESSING

  • 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

  • 1/4 to 1/3 cup lemon juice (about one large lemon)

  • 1 tsp maple syrup

  • 1 tsp Dijon mustard (*for those on Low FODMAP Diet - check ingredients to ensure no high FODMAP ingredients)

QUINOA BOWL

  • 3 cups quinoa, cooked and cooled (about 1 cup uncooked)

  • 4 cups kale, de-stemmed and chopped

  • 1 cup blueberries

  • 1 cup cucumber, diced

  • 1 medium red pepper, diced

  • 4 tablespoons (about 1/4 cup) chevre (goat cheese), crumbled

  • 1/2 cup walnuts, chopped

FODMAP salad Calgary Dietitian

METHOD

  1. Cook quinoa (for a tutorial on how to cook quinoa see here). Set aside and let cool. 

  2. Make dressing. Combine olive oil, lemon juice, Dijon and maple syrup. 

  3. Prepare kale - wash, remove stem and chop into bite sized pieces. 

  4. Combine kale with diced cucumber, red pepper, walnuts, goat cheese and blueberries in large salad bowl.

  5. Drizzle salad with a small amount of the dressing (approximately 1/3 of total dressing). Let sit for about 10 minutes. This will works to soften the kale a bit. 

  6. Assemble individual quinoa bowls:

    • Put 3/4 cup quinoa in each bowl (or plate)

    • With salad tongs, scoop out 1/4 of the salad (approx. 1.5 cups of salad mix) and place on top of quinoa. 

    • Drizzle remaining salad dressing on the quinoa bowls

  7. Enjoy!

FODMAP dietitian calgary salad blueberry

A note for those following the Low FODMAP Diet: 

If making this during the elimination phase of the diet, I recommend making the salad part of the recipe without the blueberries, goat cheese and walnuts. According the the Monash FODMAP App (as of August 2018), kale, cucumbers and red peppers (capsicum) can be eaten freely, so there isn't a risk of serving oneself too much of these in terms of FODMAPs. For the other ingredients, the blueberries, walnuts and goat cheese, I suggest adding the safe servings directly to the individual bowls, after the quinoa and kale mix has been plated. In other words, add 3/4 cup quinoa to each bowl, add kale/cucumber/red pepper mix on top of quinoa and then to each of the 4 bowls add 1/4 cup blueberries (approximately 20 blueberries), 1 tablespoon plain goat (chevre) cheese, and 2 tablespoons of walnut pieces. Then top with dressing (dressing is low FODMAP as long as using low FODMAP Dijon mustard). 

 

Recipe inspired by: Kale and Blueberry Spring Salad