Lightened Up Quinoa and Corn Salad with Toasted Pumpkin Seeds

WW Recipe of the Day: Quinoa Salad with Corn and Toasted Pumpkin Seeds

Studded with corn, pumpkin seeds, and diced red bell peppers, this lightened up Quinoa & Corn Salad is perfect as a side dish or on its own for a delicious light lunch.

Lightened Up Quinoa & Corn Salad with toasted Pumpkin Seeds, Avocado and Lime

This yummy quinoa and corn salad with toasted pumpkin seeds is a lightened up version of one in the cookbook, Power Foods: 150 Delicious Recipes with the 38 Healthiest Ingredients (affiliate link) from the editors of Whole Living Magazine.

It's another recipe that's helped me overcome my initial aversion to quinoa. Camilla's Lemony Lentil & Quinoa Salad was the first one.

How Many Calories and Weight Watchers Points in this Corn + Quinoa Salad?

Each serving of this has 190 calories and:

8 *SmartPoints (Green plan)
7 *SmartPoints (Blue plan)
4 *SmartPoints (Purple plan)
5 *PointsPlus (Old plan)

To see your WW PersonalPoints for this recipe and track it in the WW app or site, Click here!

Recipe Notes

It's important to remember that just because a recipe is full of healthy ingredients, doesn't guarantee it's low calorie. This quinoa corn salad is a great example, originally weighing in with 504 calories and 14 Weight Watchers PointsPlus, mostly because of the overly generous amount of olive oil called for and enormous 2-cup portion size.

So, when I made this salad last week to accompany the grilled salmon I was having for dinner when my sister and brother-in-law were in town, I did what any responsible food loving Weight Watchers Lifetime Member would do...

I slashed the olive oil in half and cut the portion down to a reasonable 1-cup size! Everyone gave it two thumbs up so it's going in my "make again" file.

Cooking Stovetop Quinoa

If you've made this Gluten-Free Quinoa Salad, please give the recipe a star rating below and leave a comment letting me know how you liked it. And stay in touch on Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for the latest updates.

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4.75 from 4 votes

Lightened Up Quinoa and Corn Salad with Toasted Pumpkin Seeds

A light and tasty Mexican-inspired quinoa salad studded with corn, diced red bell peppers and toasted pumpkin seeds

Prep Time20 minutes mins

Cook Time20 minutes mins

Total Time40 minutes mins

Servings (adjustable): 8

Calories: 190

Author: Martha McKinnon | Simple Nourished Living

Ingredients

• ▢ 2-¾ cup water
• ▢ 1-½ cups quinoa, rinsed and drained
• ▢ 2 ears corn (kernels cut from the cob)
• ▢ ¼ cup fresh lime juice, 2-3 limes, plus 1 lime cut into wedges for serving
• ▢ 1 teaspoon chili powder
• ▢ 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• ▢ 1 garlic clove, minced
• ▢ ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
• ▢ Kosher salt
• ▢ 1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced
• ▢ 3 scallions, trimmed and thinly sliced
• ▢ ⅓ jalapeno chile, diced
• ▢ ¼ cup coarsely chopped cilantro
• ▢ 1 ripe, firm avocado
• ▢ ¼ cup raw hulled pumpkin seeds, toasted
• ▢ 1 head red-leaf lettuce (for serving, if desired)

Instructions

• First prepare the quinoa. Bring the water to a boil in a small saucepan. Stir in the quinoa and let it return to a boil. Stir, cover and reduce the heat to a gentle simmer. Cook until the quinoa has absorbed all the water and is tender, but still chewy, about 15 minutes.
• Turn off the heat and fluff the quinoa with a fork. Place the corn kernels on top of the quinoa, cover the pan and let stand for 5 minutes.
• Stir corn into quinoa and transfer the mixture to a large bowl to cool.
• While the quinoa is cooking you can prepare the dressing. In a small bowl, whisk together the lime juice, chili powder, cumin, garlic, olive oil and ¼ teaspoon salt.
• Add the dressing, red pepper, scallions, jalapeno, and cilantro to the quinoa and corn mixture, tossing until everything is well combined.
• Taste and season with salt if desired.
• When you're ready to serve, cut the avocado in half lengthwise, discard the pit, and then peel the avocado and thinly slice it.
• Line a large platter with the lettuce leaves, if desired. Mound the quinoa salad in the middle of the platter and then arrange the avocado slices and lime wedges on the side. Sprinkle with pumpkin seeds and serve.

Equipment

Small Saucepan

Mixing Bowls

Silicone Whisk

Recipe Notes

Serving size: scant 1 cup

Click here to see your WW PersonalPoints for this recipe and track it in the WW app or site.

8 *SmartPoints (Green plan)

7 *SmartPoints (Blue plan)

4 *SmartPoints (Purple plan)

5 *PointsPlus (Old plan)

Nutrition Facts

Lightened Up Quinoa and Corn Salad with Toasted Pumpkin Seeds

Amount Per Serving (1 cup)

Calories 190 Calories from Fat 104

% Daily Value*

Fat 11.6g18%

Carbohydrates 19.9g7%

Fiber 4.7g19%

Protein 3.9g8%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Course: Vegetable / Side Dish

Cuisine: American

Keyword: quinoa corn salad, quinoa salad

Did you make this recipe?Mention @simplenourishedliving on Instagram and tag #simplenourishedliving - we love to see your creations!

Source: Power Foods: 150 Delicious Recipes with the 38 Healthiest Ingredients (affiliate link)

*Points® calculated by WW. *PointsPlus® and SmartPoints® calculated by Simple Nourished Living; Not endorsed by Weight Watchers International, Inc. All recipe ingredients except optional items included in determining nutritional estimates. SmartPoints® values calculated WITHOUT each plan's ZeroPoint Foods (Green plan, Blue plan, Purple plan) using the WW Recipe Builder.

If you like this quinoa and corn salad made lighter, you might also like:

• Greek Quinoa Salad {Vegetarian} (Simple Nourished Living)
• Southwest Stoplight Quinoa Salad (Simple Nourished Living)
• Quinoa & Black Bean Skillet (Simple Nourished Living)
• Quinoa Salad with Zucchini and Lemon (A Veggie Venture)
• Tomato Mint Quinoa Salad (LaaLoosh)
• Quinoa Spanakopita Salad (Everyday Maven on Edible Mosaic)
• Quinoa Shrimp Salad (WW)

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