Olive & Tomato Quinoa Salad

Ripe red tomatoes, salty black olives, and fresh mozzarella are tossed with quinoa and a simple vinaigrette for an easy summertime meal.

 I’m an admirer of French cuisine (this and this are some of my cookbook staples) and I have a soft spot in my heart for summertime Provencal recipes. The kind of recipe that calls for fresh garden produce, lots of herbs, olive oil, and expensive cheese.  And of course - minimal cooking. I think this may be due to reading too many Peter Mayle novels. Is anyone with me?

Anyhow, this recipe fills the bill for summertime.  Quinoa cooks quickly so you don’t need to slave over a hot stove.  Everything else is fresh and delicious – requiring just a quick chop, then a stir into the warm quinoa. 
Don’t forget your glass of icy Pastis.

Olive & Tomato Quinoa Salad

• 1 cup dry quinoa (cooked)
  
• 1 cup chopped cherry tomatoes
  
• 1 cup chopped salty black olives
  
• 1 1/2 cups fresh mozzarella (we used bocconcini; the little balls)
  
• large handful chopped fresh basil
  
• scant 1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
  
• scant 1/3 cup olive oil

Cook quinoa as usual (add 2 cups water, simmer for 15-20 minutes or until all water is absorbed). 
Coarsely chop cherry tomatoes, olives, fresh mozzarella, and basil.  Set aside.
Whisk oil & vinegar together in liquid measuring cup or small bowl.  Drizzle over the hot cooked quinoa and stir to combine.  Wait until the quinoa is not too hot (you don’t want to melt the mozzarella), then stir in all the chopped veggies and herbs.  Top with a pretty cherry tomato & sprig of basil and serve.

Spring Herb Quinoa Patties

Spring is so close! But really, it’s just barely here.  If you’re lucky you might have some tender leaves sprouting in your herb pots (I found chives in mine today!) but other than that we still have a bit of a wait until it’s really spring.

Those tiny little spring herb leaves are so exciting, though, that we wanted to let them shine in these delicious quinoa patties. Mint, parsley, and green onion are tossed with quinoa and shavings of flavorful cheese.  Crispy on the outside and packed with flavor, this is my spring go-to lunch.



These are made with simple whole foods ingredients. All you do is mix everything up in a bowl, then form little patties and pan fry them until they’re golden and crisp on each side. 



The mixture stores well in the fridge for a few days, so you can whip up a full batch and then fry just a few each day for lunch.  That’s what I’ve been doing! 

Spring Herb Quinoa Patties

inspired by a recipe in Super Natural Every Day, by Heidi Swanson
Yield is 8-10 patties

• 2 cups cooked quinoa (about 3/4 c. dry)
• 2 eggs
• 2 Tbsp chopped green onion
• 2 Tbsp chopped mint
• 2 Tbsp chopped parsley
• 1/2 c. grated strong cheese – we used an aged sheep’s milk cheese
• 1/2 c. bread crumbs
• 1/4 tsp salt

Combine everything but the quinoa in a large bowl and mix well.  Fold in the cooked quinoa until it’s fully incorporated and the mixture is even.
Heat a large frying pan, with a drizzle of oil to coat, to medium high.
Using a spoon & your hands, form appox 2” patties with the quinoa mix and plop them into the hot frying pan.
Cook each side for approx 3 minutes, or until golden brown.  Don’t disturb them for the first minute or two to prevent them from falling apart!  Flip, and cook the other side for an additional 3-ish minutes, or until both sides are golden brown.
Serve with more freshly grated cheese on top.

Mediterranean Quinoa Salad

Summer in Colorado has been HOT this year.  I’ve been wracking my brain trying to think of ways to use fresh vegetables that don’t require roasting or extended cooking of any sort (because this has the unfortunate side effect of making my house feel like an oven for the rest of the day).

I have happily settled on this quinoa salad.  It is filling, cool, and full of fresh Mediterranean flavors:  tomatoes, olives, feta, red onion, and any big handfuls of herbs you care to trim from your garden.  I used chives, mint, basil, and parsley.



Another fun fact: this is a really great recipe to deliver to new mothers.  Dulcie and I have each made this recipe for a friend with a newborn (Hi Rachel! Hi Kristi!) and it was a hit…we think!  It doesn’t need to be eaten immediately, is meant to be eaten cold or room temperature, and is low on the sorts of things some nursing mothers need to avoid (gluten, soy, egg, and dairy -- the feta is easily omitted).

Mediterranean Quinoa Salad

Dressing:

• 1/4 c. apple cider vinegar (although I’ve made it with white balsamic and think I might actually prefer that, so feel free to experiment here)
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• juice from 1 lemon
• 3 Tbsp olive oil

Salad:

• 1 1/2 c. quinoa (measured dry, then cooked according to usual directions)
• 1/2 c. chopped kalamata olives
• 1 red onion, diced
• 1 c. fresh tomatoes, diced
• 1/2 c. (or more, to taste) crumbled feta cheese
• 1 c. chopped mixed herbs (parsley, mint, basil, cilantro, and chives are all excellent)

Cook quinoa according to usual directions (I do 1:2 ratio of quinoa to water).  Fluff and let quinoa cool as you prepare the other ingredients.
For dressing: combine all ingredients in a large liquid measuring cup and whisk.  Feel free to use a fork if you want to save a dirty dish – I did.
Combine all salad ingredients in a large bowl, pour over the dressing, and toss to combine.

Lemony Barley Salad

After making homemade ricotta, we were left with a lot of whey.  It seemed so wasteful to throw it all away.  Unfortunately I have no desire to dehydrate the whey and then throw the powder into super-protein shakes, and I do not have any farm animals to feed the nutritious whey to (much to my dismay).
I finally decided to try cooking a grain – barley – in the whey.  I was pleasantly surprised with the results.  Whey is a clear yellowish liquid by-product from cheese making with a tart and tangy taste.  When you cook barley in it, then add lemon juice and zest plus a few southwestern ingredients, you get a really delicious warm grain salad. 

I finely chopped about 1/2 small head of red cabbage.  I love red cabbage because of its bright color, and the crunchiness of it was perfect with this grain based salad.

The brightness of the lemon zest really complements the tanginess of the warm grain salad.

Lemony Barley Salad

• 1 cup dry barley
  
• 2 cups whey (or water if you haven’t recently made ricotta at home!)
  
• 1 lemon, zest removed
  
• 1/2 red cabbage
  
• 1/2 bunch cilantro
  
• 1/2 c. queso fresco
  
• drizzle olive oil

Combine the barley and whey (or water) in a saucepan and simmer for 40 minutes, or until barley is tender.
Zest the lemon, reserve zest.  Drizzle the juice of the lemon over the warm barley. 
Finely chop 1/2 small head of red cabbage and 1/2 bunch cilantro.  Crumble the 1/2 c queso fresco cheese.  Toss the lemony barley together with the vegetables and cheese, add the lemon zest during the tossing, then drizzle with olive oil to taste.
Serve!