Do you find that you munch while you’re cooking dinner and by the time you sit down to eat, you’re full? This is the story of my life. Last week Julie made a smart suggestion on her blog: whip up something else while dinners cooks and you’ll be less likely to graze.
The other night we pulled out frozen lasagna from the freezer (care of the Boyfriend’s thoughtful mother) and roasted some chopped carrots with rosemary olive oil my own mother gave me for Christmas. (Dinner was a family affair — thanks, moms!) It was a simple dinner that called for a lot of oven time. To occupy myself I made a quinoa salad that I’ve had on the brain for a while.
- 1 c. quinoa, cooked
- 1/2 pepper, diced
- 1/2 c. cheese, diced (Cheddar is okay; Feta is betta)
- Olives (any variety), sliced
- a drizzle of olive oil
- Salt and pepper
Bring 2 cups of water to a boil and add the quinoa. Turn down to a simmer and cook quinoa for 12-15 minutes. The quinoa will completely absorb the water when it is done cooking.
Add the quinoa and the other ingredients in a bowl and mix thoroughly.
I think capers or pigeon peas would have been such a good addition to this! The salad was tasty but there could have been more flavor. Next time I make this I think I’m going to go all out and buy feta and roast some red peppers, too! Yum!
The most important thing about this salad was the hearty and healthy quinoa. Quinoa is very fast to make, which is a huge plus in my opinion. And I love having a large grainy salad to portion out for lunch throughout the week. Zesty Cook seems to agree: check out his tasty-looking pasta salad from today’s post.
