Asparagus, egg and quinoa salad

Serves 4 Preparation time: 20 minutes Cooking time: 25 minutes

Barbecue season will soon be upon us and you’ll need to feed those who abstain from sausages and other traditional burnt offerings. This salad should do the trick, as long as you can cope with the non-believers telling you 10 reasons why they don’t eat quinoa. It can be made in advance and refrigerated, but let it return to room temperature before serving.

400g asparagus, ends trimmed, cut into 5cm pieces

½ cup quinoa

3 eggs, at room temperature

2 Tbsp toasted sesame seeds

6 spring onions, finely chopped

½ cup fresh flat leaf parsley, finely chopped

FOR THE DRESSING

1 small clove garlic, crushed to a paste with ¼ tsp salt

1 tsp dijon mustard

Finely grated zest of 1 lemon

3 Tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice

2 Tbsp cream

1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 Cook the asparagus in boiling salted water until bright green and only just tender. Drain and refresh under the cold tap, then drain well and pat dry with a clean tea towel. Set aside. 2 Tip the quinoa into a sieve and rinse well under cold running water. Drain, then put in a pot with 1 ½ cups water. Cover and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Cook for about 10-15 minutes, until the water is absorbed and the quinoa is tender. Remove from the heat and tip into a salad bowl, fluffing it with a fork. 3 Cook the eggs in a separate pot while the quinoa is cooking. Slip them into a small pot of boiling water set over medium heat. Add a pinch of salt and simmer for seven minutes. Drain immediately, shaking the pot to crack the shells. Run under cold water until cool enough to handle, then shell the eggs. Cut into quarters lengthwise. 4 To make the dressing, place the crushed garlic, mustard, lemon zest and juice in a small bowl and whisk together to combine. Slowly add the oil and cream, stirring until emulsified. Add freshly ground black pepper and salt to taste.

5 Pour two-thirds of the dressing over the quinoa, fluffing it up with a large fork as you go. Fold in the cooked asparagus, eggs, sesame seeds, spring onions and parsley. Drizzle over the remaining dressing and serve.