Mediterranean Quinoa Salad
Well guys it is 2013! And I want to clean!
I know I am a crazy person! But with all twenty-one of our guest leaving today the house needs a good scrubbing, a trip to the store and some organization!
It always feel’s good to get back in the swing of things! Well at least for me. I know some people who would argue that (and who think I am a nut case)!
We have had so much fun over the last two weeks. They were filled with family and friends and LOTS of good food! Dinners have been beef tenderloin with blue cheese and herb butter, turkey with gravy and mashed potatoes, stuffed sun-dried tomato chicken with penne and brussels sprouts, pulled BBQ Pork (soo good, recipe soon!), my aunt Katie’s white lasagna and then there was New Years Eve.
New Years Eve I made a mexican feast! Filled with homemade hot tamales, Queso Fundidio, mexican rice ane homemade guacamole. It was a delicious way to ring in the new year.
With all the cleaning and organizing I thought this light and yummy quinoa salad would be perfect to keep us going. It’s great packed up for lunch, a nice side to some grilled steak or chicken for dinner or even a good light dinner. It is chuck full of protein from the quinoa and loaded with tons of antioxidants from the tomatoes, olives, and spinach. Throw in some crumbled feta cheese and you will feel like you are sailing the Mediterranean!
Yum-oh! (No, I promise I do not watch a lot of Rachel Ray. It is just that my cousins say Yum-oh all the time and after two weeks it is catching on)
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Mediterranean Quinoa Salad
By halfbakedharvest
Course: Salad
Cuisine: American
Keyword: quinoa salad
It's great packed up for lunch, a nice side to some grilled steak or chicken for dinner or even a good light dinner. It is chuck full of protein from the quinoa and loaded with tons of antioxidants from the tomatoes, olives, and spinach.
Ingredients
- 1 cup dry quinoa
- 2 cups water
- 2 cups sliced grape tomatoes
- 1 cup spinach chopped
- 1/2 cup sliced kalamata olives
- 4 ounces feta cheese about a half cup
- 1 tablespoon kalamata olive juice the brine that olives are jarred in
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 tsp dry oregano
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
Instructions
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Combine the water and quinoa in a medium sized pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer and let cook for about 15 minutes, or until the quinoa has absorbed all of the water. Fluff with a fork.
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Well the quinoa cooks make the dressing. Combine the olive oil, olive juice, garlic, oregano, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Mix well and set aside.
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In a large bowl, combine the sliced tomatoes, olives and spinach. Add quinoa and mix well. Drizzle the dressing on top and add feta cheese.
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Toss everything together. Serve immediately or store in the fridge until serving.
Starting the new year off right!
This is one I’m going to try, it looks and sounds great! Since I love lemon I will squirt some lemon on mine. Thanks!
Gorgeous photos!!! Wow, you know how to make food look sooo good. I haven’t ever tried quinoa, but I love this salad, so good and good for you. Happy New Year and thanks for linking up!
Thank you!
That looks SOOOOOOOOO good!!!!! I agree, your photos are stunning! What camera/lens do you use?
Thanks so much for sharing this at The DIY Dreamer.. From Dream To Reality!! HAPPY NEW YEAR!!
Thanks you! I use a Canon 60D with a 50mm lens.
Qunioa recipes always seem to turn out so delicious and satisfying! I’ve never tried a mediterranean style quinoa dish and am eager to try your recipe! Hope you have a great weekend!
Quinoa is something I need to try. My son can’t have wheat, but I have yet to try making anything with quinoa even though I know it is GF. Looks yummy! Visiting (again) from TT&J Wrap Party. 🙂
Love this salad, I discovered quinoa pretty recently and still trying to accommodate my family with it. This salad look soo good and I am sure it tastes as it looks.
I have never eaten or cooked with quinoa but really want to. This might just have to be my “First”. Looks fantastic! Thanks for sharing at Church Supper. Have a blessed week & come back soon!
Yum, this looks delicious! And it’s actually healthy, so my husband can eat this on his weight loss journey. Thanks! Will be pinning this for sure 🙂
That looks great! Thanks so much for the recipe! I am going to start making way more quinoa salads! Pinning this now 🙂 Thanks
Thanks for pinning!
Hi – I just found you thru Marvelous Mondays – I love this recipe, and the pics are gorgeous. I’d love if you’d visit me at http://www.winterpastcooking.blogspot.com.
~LuAnne
Hi!
I saw you linked up at Watch Out, Martha- this looks great! I already eat a lot of quinoa because I have a gluten allergy.
Beth @ The First Year Blog
This looks delicious I can’t wait to try it….visiting you via Printabelle party : )
Wow! That looks so delicious!
This looks so yummy! And it looks like it won’t add to my muffin top like everything else I’ve been eating for the last few weeks 🙂 Pinning!
LOVE! I love all of this – pinning;)
Found you at Hungry little Girl!
This looks delicious! You are a featured favorite this week on Saturday Show & Tell at Cheerios and Lattes! Thanks so much for sharing last week, we can’t wait to see what you’ve been up to this week!
Have a great weekend,
Mackenzie 🙂
Beautiful photos and wonderful salad!
It is actually one of our favorite salad, and we have it quite often of Fri-dinner
THank you I am really working on my food photography!
This looks fabulous! Pinned and I am totally making this tomorrow! Thanks for the recipe!
Jenn 🙂
THanks for pinning and let me know what you think!
This sounds like such a refreshing salad. Pinned to try! Thank you for sharing at All My Bloggy Friends last week. I look forward to seeing what you share this week 🙂
I bought quinoa for the first time and made this recipe today. Super quick and easy and salad was excellent! I just added a little fresh basil to it because, well I’m addicted to basil…Can’t wait for leftovers for lunch tomorrow!
I am not overly fond of feta cheese….is there another cheese that you think might go well with the recipe?
Mozzarella would be great in this! I hope you enjoy! Thanks for reading!
If you add basil with the mozzarella substitution, it would be like a caprese salad variation. Doing it!!!
Such a delicious idea!! yum!
I jut made this and turned out great, i can’t stop eating it. I don’t like olives so I left those out and added red onions but still used the olive juice. I also added kale and a tablespoon of Udo’s Oil to the dressing. Thanks for an amazing recipe, I will be making this for every picnic all summer long.
I bet red onions were so good in this!! Yum! I am so glad you loved it and thank you so much for telling me! I LOVE comments like these!
I found this recipe on Pinterest, made it for the first time this week and it is delicious!! It will definitely be in my normal rotation!
I just recently discovered Quinoa and have been looking for simple, after work recipes I can throw together for just myself. I cut this recipe in half and it was a perfect meal for me. Thanks so much for sharing this!
I am so glad you loved this! Thanks for giving the recipe a try and letting me know! I love comments like these!
This was an easy salad to make and very tasty. It was better tasting a couple of hours later. I will definitely make this again.
Yay!! I am so glad you liked it! thanks for trying it!
This looks delicious! I can’t wait to try it!
Thank you, Hayley! Hope you love it!
I just made this salad and it is so delicious!! Thank you for posting this recipe!
YAY!! So happy you loved this!! Thanks Christina!
I made this for Easter brunch today – delicious! Thanks for all of the great recipes!