Cucumber and Quinoa Salad

Cucumber and Quinoa Salad~ is made with diced English cucumber, cooked quinoa, crumbled feta cheese, fresh basil, red onion, and tossed with a lemony vinaigrette.  So refreshing, the fresh flavors represents the essence of spring!  Happy First Week of Spring!  To celebrate I made us a healthy Cucumber and Quinoa Salad.

What better way to celebrate than with a healthy salad, and one you can eat all week long!
We love the flavors of the Mediterranean diet, eating healthy grains like quinoa along with fresh vegetables and herbs and of course, adding in fresh lemon juice and extra-virgin olive oil. Plus, the feta cheese! Oh, what could be better?  Totally good for you food!

Cucumber and Quinoa Salad is one of our family's favorite salad.  They love to come home to find it in the fridge just waiting for them.  My daughter loves the lemony flavors and enjoys taking some back with her for school.

Besides it's a healthy salad, you can literally eat this salad for lunch, or dinner, or whenever hunger strikes.  It's a salad that gets better and better the longer it sits and marinates.  You can adjust the amount of lemon juice and olive oil to your liking.  It' so good, you may even find yourself eating out of the bowl.  I think you'll enjoy eating this refreshing salad every time you dig into it.

It's easy to make, gluten-free, and if you omit the cheese, it's vegan.

So make this delicious salad this week and enjoy! Ah, Spring is finally here!




Cucumber and Quinoa Salad

• 1 cup organic white quinoa (I used TJ's)
• 1 cup water 
• 1 cup clear chicken broth, or vegetable broth
• 1 English cucumber -diced
• 1/2 cup red onion - minced
• juice of 1 lemon
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 cup freshly chopped basil 
• 1 Tbsp. fresh chopped parsley 
• 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• fresh cracked pepper to taste

1.  Cook the Quinoa: place quinoa with water and broth in a medium pot, cover and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for 15 minutes, until all the liquid is absorbed.  Remove from heat and fluff with a fork. Set aside to cool completely or refrigerate.

2.  In a large bowl, add the quinoa, cucumber, red onion, fresh basil, parsley, and feta cheese. Set aside.

3.  Make the vinaigrette: in a measuring cup, pour 1/4 cup of olive oil, then squeeze the juice of 1 lemon, add salt and some fresh cracked pepper and stir to blend all the flavors.  Pour into the bowl.  Toss everything to blend. Taste the salad, and adjust the salt and pepper to taste.

4.  Chill for least  1 hour before serving.  Taste the salad before serving. You may add a drizzle more of extra-virgin olive oil and lemon, to your liking.

Serves