FETA & OREGANO QUINOA SALAD

facebook share image   twitter share image   pinterest share image   E-Mail share image



Feta & Oregano Quinoa Salad image

I came across this recipe in a book called Quinoa 365: The Everyday Superfood, and it was a hit at a family BBQ, using the original cheese; Bocconcini. Bummed out that I didn't take the leftovers home for lunches, I made it again, this time using Herb & Garlic crumbled feta that I had in the fridge - holy bananas, feta took this salad to rock star status! I have two parrots, Merlin and Arwen (featured in some of my pics), and I had to put out two treat dishes for them, as neither would let the other near it! Try it with any good, tasty, cheese, and you'll love it - and if you don't do cheese, marinated tofu would be stellar as well. Use your imagination! One thing I can say is that when I made the salad with Bocconcini, maybe it was because I didn't marinate it, I served it immediately, but somehow, that very mild cheese just didn't do the dish justice. I sure hope you enjoy this as much as we did!

Provided by Katzen

Categories     Grains

Time 30m

Yield 8 cups, 4-6 serving(s)

Number Of Ingredients 16

3/4 cup quinoa (white, red, black, or a combination)
1 1/2 cups water
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard or 1 tablespoon coarse grain mustard
2 tablespoons fresh oregano, finely chopped or 2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 teaspoon fresh garlic, minced
salt, to taste
pepper, freshly ground, to taste
1 cup zucchini, diced
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 cup red onion, diced
1/2 cup baby green pea, frozen
1 cup red bell pepper, diced
1 cup yellow bell pepper, diced
1 cup bocconcini, Pearl or 1 cup bocconcini, Mini, halved

Steps:

  • Rinse and strain the quinoa to remove the bitter coating. Most quinoa today are pre-rinsed, so check the package, but even so, I prefer to give it one more rinse. Bring the quinoa and water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Cover, reduce to a simmer, and cook for 10 minutes. Turn the heat off and leave the covered saucepan on the burner for another 4 minutes. Remove the lid and fluff the cooked quinoa with a fork. Set aside to cool.
  • Whisk the vinegar, olive oil, mustard, oregano, garlic, salt, and pepper together in a small bowl.
  • Combine the salad ingredients in a large bowl; pour the dressing over the vegetables and thoroughly mix. Add the quinoa, and mix until evenly combined.
  • Serve immediately or refrigerate for up to 3 days.

Nutrition Facts : Calories 337.7, Fat 17.2, SaturatedFat 6.8, Cholesterol 33.4, Sodium 476, Carbohydrate 34, Fiber 5.4, Sugar 8.6, Protein 12.4

There are no comments yet!