Rio Star Grapefruit & Quinoa Salad
Did you know that red grapefruit is state fruit of Texas? Texas Red Grapefruit are sweet, juicy and tree-ripened, literally stored on the tree to peak of perfection. Rio Star combines the two reddest varieties – Rio Red and Star Ruby grapefruit. It has an overall blush on the exterior peel with a deep red interior color which is 7 to 10 times redder than the Ruby Red. Rio Star grapefruits are in season from late October to early May.

Ingredients
1 Texas Rio Star Grapefruit, sectioned
1 Texas Orange, sectioned
8 thin slices fresh ginger
1/4 cup extra-virgin oil
3/4 cup quinoa
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 Tbsp white wine vinegar
2 tsp honey
1 small serrano pepper, minced (with seeds for maximum heat)
2 scallions (both white and green parts), minced
2 carrots, peeled and diced
2 Tbsp chopped fresh cilantro leaves (substitute parsley if you don’t like cilantro)
Freshly ground black pepper
Strip the peel from the grapefruit with a vegetable peeler, taking care not to include the bitter white pith. Warm the grapefruit peel, ginger, and olive oil in a small saucepan over medium heat. As soon as the oil starts to bubble, after about 2 minutes, remove from heat. Set the oil aside to steep for 30 minutes. Strain and reserve the oil.
Meanwhile, rinse the quinoa in a bowl and drain. Put the quinoa in a small saucepan with 1 1/2 water and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Boil over high heat, and then reduce heat to maintain a gentle simmer and cook, uncovered, for 15 minutes. Set aside off the heat, undisturbed, for 5 minutes. Transfer the quinoa to a bowl and fluff with a fork. Cool.

Segment the grapefruit over a bowl, reserving the segments and juice separately. Whisk 3 tablespoons of the grapefruit juice with the vinegar, honey, and salt to taste in a medium bowl. Gradually whisk in 3 tablespoons of the reserved grapefruit oil, starting with a few drops and then adding the rest in a stream to make a slightly thick dressing. Season with pepper to taste.

Toss quinoa with the dressing, chiles, scallions, carrots and cilantro. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.