Thai Quinoa Salad

It's Sunday again, so that means it's time for me to get inspired about some healthy, filling lunches for the week. I'm notorious for getting stuck in a rut (which is why I have no problem eating the same lunch five days in a row), so I've returned to the "Iowa Girl Eats" blog for a little more quinoa inspiration (yup, quinoa again--I told you, I like a rut). When I found this recipe, I got really excited: http://iowagirleats.com/recipes/?recipe_id=6037481. I only made a couple of minor changes, most of which were based on what we already had in the house.

Ingredients (for the salad):
1 1/2 cups dry quinoa (I used this cool organic red quinoa my parents gave us recently; it turned out a little more crunchy than the golden kind, which I really liked for this recipe)
1 cup coconut milk
1 cup chicken broth
1 mango, peeled and chopped
1 cup edamame, thawed
1/4 cup chopped cilantro (I cheated with the tube variety again)
1/4 cup nuts (I had some slivered almonds, so I used those; peanuts also work really well with Thai flavors)
1/4 cup dried cranberries

Ingredients (for the Thai dressing):
1/3 cup fresh lime juice (I only had 3, woefully sad limes on hand, so I added a little lemon juice, too)
1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce (I thought the soy overwhelmed the dressing, so I'd go lighter on the 1/4 cup next time, then add as I was tasting)
1/4 cup sesame oil (I did a scant 1/4 cup, and it worked well)
1 tbsp honey
Pinch of ground ginger (dried spice)

Directions:

• Bring coconut milk and chicken broth to a boil, then add quinoa. Turn heat down to medium-low, cover, and simmer for 15 minutes (or until quinoa has absorbed the liquid). Cool quinoa by removing from stove and placing in fridge or freezer to chill.
• Thaw edamame, following package directions. (Usually, immerse in boiling water for 3 minutes, then rinse under cold water until cool.)
• Peel and chop mango. If you've never worked with a mango before, it's not hard--don't be intimidated! A mango has a fibrous, long pit in the middle, and the flesh of the fruit will cling to it. Slice off the sides, then score the fruit before peeling it off of the skin (see photo below).

• Whisk together dressing ingredients in a small bowl. Add each ingredient a bit at a time, testing taste as you go. 
• Mix edamame, nuts, cranberries, cilantro, and mango in a large bowl.

• Add cooled quinoa and half the dressing, then stir to combine. Taste and add more dressing as desired. (I ended up using about 2/3 of the dressing I'd made.)

Just like last week's quinoa salad, I plan to add shrimp or chicken to this one daily to get a little more protein added in. Other than that, though, my lunches are ready to go for the week!