Roasted Summer Vegetable Salad with Quinoa + Buttermilk Dressing

Combine the quinoa and water in a small pot with a matching lid. Stir in ½ teaspoon of salt. Bring this to a boil, then stir well and reduce to medium heat. Partially cover and cook for about 16 minutes. Return to stir it once or twice and when the timer is done, cover it and turn off the heat. Let it steam for another 5 - 6 minutes.

Fill a large pasta pot with about half as much water as you’d use for pasta. Bring it to a boil with about 1 Tablespoon of salt.

Chop the cauliflower into florets. You can even chop up most of the stem and leaves too - discard any parts that are really dried out or yellowed. Place in a bowl and add it to the boiling water. Boil for about 8 minutes.

Meanwhile, trim the stem end of the green beans, then cut them in half. Add to the cauliflower pot after 8 minutes have passed and boil both for a final 2 - 3 minutes or until both veggies are crispy but tender. Drain and run under cool water to chill. Let them hang out for a bit in a colander to release any extra water.

Whisk together the mayonnaise, buttermilk, onion powder, dried parsley flakes, garlic powder, pepper and about ½ teaspoon of salt. Give it a taste, you may prefer a little more salt (sometimes I add a splash of lemon if I have one needing a home, but not always). Put in the fridge to chill.

(Use veggie sausage for vegetarian.) Slice sausages into rounds. Heat a sauté pan over medium heat and drizzle in the olive oil. Cook sausages until they’re golden on both sides, about 5 - 7 minutes.

Wash lettuce and tear it into pieces. Let it dry really well, use a salad spinner if that’s easier.

Wash and slice the radishes into thin slices. Slice the cucumber into thin rounds. Slice the avocado.

You can either toss or neatly assemble this salad. Add the lettuce, a scoop of quinoa, the cauliflower and green beans and the raw veggies. Toss in the sausages.

Serve with dressing spooned over or tossed together. Add avocado to taste.