Greek Quinoa Salad

Try taking your salad to the next level with the addition of a super-seed.

I make salads aaaall the time. It’s one of the easiest meal preps to ensure I am getting a healthy lunch at work. A salad can be changed up in countless ways, from the add-ins to the dressing or even the main ingredient being something different than the typical lettuce. I keep seeing all these recipes for cold quinoa salad. Needless to say, I have been intrigued. I am a carb lover and health nut so I am all about this gluten free superfood. It was time I tried this addition to my salad recipe!

Quinoa is actually a seed, although most people think it is a grain. It’s loaded with protein and high in fiber, while also containing all of the essential amino acids your body needs.

My favorite quinoa to buy is the Ancient Harvest brand, and I prefer the blend that is white, red and black together.

I love Greek food and don’t ever make it on my own. My best friend cooks it so well and used to spoil me with it when we lived together. I figured I would start off easy with just some greens first! For my greek salad ingredients I included cucumber, kalamata olives, tomatoes, feta cheese and a little red onion. Of course I also included some quinoa, which I cooked separately and let cool.

The homemade dressing is what really tops this recipe off! All you need is some simple ingredients you probably already have on hand.
– red wine vinegar
– extra virgin olive oil
– dijon mustard
– garlic
– onion
– basil
– oregano
– pepper
– salt

Healthy does not have to be complicated- this was so simple to put together! Just chop the veggies and combine everything in a bowl. Mix in the cold quinoa and drizzle with the homemade dressing. This Greek style quinoa salad will definitely be made again! I haven’t had cold quinoa like this before and it worked better than I was anticipating. Now that I’ve tried it I can’t wait to power up more salad recipes with this good carb!

Greek Quinoa Salad

Traditional greek salad with the addition of quinoa and some homemade dressing.

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 15 minutes mins

Total Time 45 minutes mins

Course Salad

Cuisine Greek

Servings 2 people

Ingredients

  

• 1 cup spinach
• 1 cup lettuce
• 1/2 cup quinoa
• 1/2 cucumber
• 1 tomato
• 1/4 cup olives kalamata
• 2 tbsp feta cheese crumbles
• 2 tbsp olive oil extra vigrin
• 3 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 1/2 tbsp dijon
• 1 clove garlic
• 1/4 onion red
• 1 tsp basil
• 1 tsp oregano
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1/4 tsp sea salt

Instructions

 

• Cook the quinoa and let cool. You can make the dressing during this time. I used red wine vinegar, extra virgin olive oil and dijon mustard with a little mined garlic and onion. The seasonings were basil, oregano and a dash of pepper and sea salt.
• Slice the cucumber and tomatoes, then combine with kalamata olives, feta cheese and a little red onion in a bowl with greens. Mix in the cold quinoa and drizzle with the homemade dressing.

Notes

The cook time and passive time is strictly for the quinoa. If you have some already pre-made then you are all set!

Quinoa is one of those power foods you can cook for any meal or use in a snack. I have experimented with it quite a bit and never been disappointed. Now I suppose I need to try quinoa for breakfast too! I found this great list of quinoa for every occasion here.

If you like quinoa, check out the pasta made using this superfood! Although I try to eat gluten free mostly, pasta is definitely my weakness. I have tried many different substitutions but I must say that this is one of my favorites. It holds together just right and besides tasting good I know I am benefitting my body!

Some sources I gathered information from:
https://authoritynutrition.com/11-proven-benefits-of-quinoa/