Quinoa bowl with spicy squash and arugula

Week three of attempting to build a better lunch:

Quinoa bowl with spicy squash and arugula

Adapted from a couple of recipes: Red Quinoa Salad with Black Beans and Avocado, a Merc Co-Op recipe from the Taste section that I can't find the link to, and Spicy and Tangy Sweet Potatoes from Beth Dooley, printed in the Jan. 26, 2017, Taste section.

Ingredients

4 cups chopped butternut squash

1 green onion, chopped

2 tablespoons coconut oil, melted

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon chili powder

½ teaspoon ground cumin

1 cup red quinoa

2 cups water

1 small red onion, chopped

1 ½ cups cooked black beans

3½ tablespoons fresh lime juice

3½ tablespoons light olive oil

1 ½ teaspoons chopped cilantro

½ teaspoon ground cumin

½ teaspoon sea salt or to taste

Arugula, several cups

Chopped toasted pecans, about a tablespoon per serving

The method

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Toss the squash with the green onion, coconut oil, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, chili powder, and cumin. Spread on a rimmed baking sheet and roast about 30 minutes until tender and lightly browned. Remove from oven and set aside.

Meanwhile, bring quinoa and 2 cups water to a simmer. Cook for 15 minutes or until liquid is absorbed. Add red onion and black beans and set aside.

Mix lime juice, olive oil, cilantro, ½ teaspoon cumin and ½ teaspoon sea salt, adjusting seasonings as desired.

The drill: Put quinoa-bean mixture in an individual serving bowl. Top with some squash cubes, a generous handful of arugula and about a tablespoon of pecans. Transport about a tablespoon of the lime dressing separately and drizzle on right before serving. Makes 5 reasonable lunch-size servings.

Rating: Tasty and satisfying. Quinoa and beans are much more filling (and no doubt more caloric) than a salad.  Those spicy squash cubes aren't particularly spicy, but roasted squash is always tasty in my book. I didn't get tired of it by the end of the week.

Note: If you're one of those that hate cilantro, aka coriander, obviously you can substitute parsley. And you'd probably appreciate this tweet.