Quinoa Pilaf

I finally bought quinoa! For the past two years, quinoa has popped up on the salad bar at work. The local grocery store I shop at does not carry it. Finally, I remembered to look for this grain when I was in Trader Joes. Quinoa is a great sorce of protein, so I look forward to creating some meatless meals with this grain. You can prepare it a variety of ways. They key with preparing quinoa is to rinse it well to reduce bitterness. I found this pilaf recipe on Apple A Day.

You will need:
*1 cup quinoa, rinsed and drained
*2 cups of chicken stock or vegetable stock
*2 tbsp olive oil, divided
*1 small red onion, finely chopped
*1/3 cup dried cranberries
*1/2 cup walnuts, toasted and roughly chopped
*3 tbsp parsley, roughly chopped

1. Bring the quinoa and stock to a boil over high heat. Reduce to a simmer; cover and allow to cook for 18 minutes.

2. While the quinoa is cooking, add one tablespoon of oil to a saute pan, and cook the onions until slightly soft and translucent (About 5 minutes)

3. Once the quinoa is cooked, remove from the heat, uncover, and fluff with a fork. Fold in remaining oil, onions, cranberries, walnuts, and parsley. Serve.