Greek inspired quinoa salad

First, I would like to add my favorite grain, quinoa, to list of favorites we use all the time. It is about the size of cous-cous, gluten free, crunchy and delicious. Works as a substitute for rice when you get tired of it, cous-cous and you can buy it as a flour too, which I haven't tried out yet. It is supposed to be a healthier grain than wheat and rice, so definitely worth a try for even those gluten lovers out there. You can find it at Trader Joe's and Whole Foods, and I'm sure most other grocery stores have it too, but it's a bit pricier there from what I have found. The "regular" version is sort of tan colored, but it also comes in a red variety which is a bit crunchier and I like even better. Sometimes I mix the two together like I have today.

Ok, enough loving quinoa and onto the recipe. This is really just a jumble of all the last bits of produce I have for the week. I have to go shopping tomorrow. I had one cucumber ready from my mini garden (it's my first one!) and two small tomatoes.

Cucumber
2 small tomatoes
Half a big red onion
Parsley freshly chopped
2 cloves of garlic
1 cup of uncooked quinoa
Juice of one lemon
Olive oil
Salt and pepper
Low or Fat Free feta

Cook the quinoa just like rice with same water to grain ratio. I made mine in the rice cooker too, even easier. Let cool down. In the meantime, chop up all the veggies nice and small. I also took out the seed area of the tomato to cut down on the juice. Mince garlic and combine with veggies and parsley. Add the cooled quinoa and seasonings (juice, oil, S&P). Finally add the feta when salad is just ready to be served.

So serve up with some protein (we're having leftover chicken drumsticks from a BBQ) and enjoy! :)