TREAT: Healthy Vegetarian Quinoa Salad

Hi Sylvia!  You mentioned that I have not listed anything in ages, which is true and being at home sick, I figured this is good time to catch up.  Also, I realized I need a hobby, which has turned into me trying to find my favorite healthy vegetarian recipes, so I will post ones that are successful here and you can try them out too :)  My goal is to find a number of versatile vegetarian recipes that are healthy, but really flavorful & edible by my carnivore husband.  You can be the beneficiary of this because I am pretty picky and I will post my favorite ones on here :)


SO, I tried a vegetarian quinoa recipe yesterday and LOVED it.  I adapted it a bit and definitely recommend trying this -- it is really easy to make, has great flavor and texture.  If you haven't tried quinoa before, it is a healthy grain that has a nutty flavor.




Ingredients:


3 cups of vegetable broth (if you need to, you can add up to 4 cups) 
1 1/2 cups of uncooked quinoa 
1/4 cup of apple cider vinegar 
2 cloves of garlic, minced 
Juice from one lemon 
3 Tbsp olive oil 
1/2 cup kalamata olives, sliced 
1/3 cup fresh parsley, chopped 
1/3 cup fresh cilantro, chopped 
Red onion, diced (the recipe called for one red onion, I used 1/2) 
1 cup cherry tomatoes, sliced in half 
1/2 cup of chopped artichoke hearts 
1/2 cucumber, peeled and chopped 
1 red bell pepper 
1/2 cup of crumbled feta cheese 
Salt & pepper to taste 


Preparation:


In a medium-large saucepan, cook the quinoa in the vegetable broth for 15-20 minutes under medium heat, until tender, stirring occasionally.  Allow it to cool. 


In a bowl, whisk together the vinegar, lemon juice, garlic and olive oil. 


Toss the quinoa with the remaining ingredients, except for the feta.  Pour the olive oil mixture over the quinoa.







Add salt & pepper to taste & add the feta cheese & mix again.  Done!