Mediterranean Quinoa Salad

Ingredients: makes 6 servings

2 cups chicken stock (or 2 cups water and 2 bouillon cubes)

1 clove garlic, minced

1 cup uncooked quinoa

2-3 cups cooked chicken, chopped

1 red onion, diced

1 cucumber, chopped

1/2 cup kalamata olives, sliced (or more to your liking)

1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped (I use dried and just eyeball the amount)

1/4 cup fresh chives or scallions, chopped

1/2 tsp salt

Juice from 3 lemons (about 2/3 cup)

1 Tbs balsamic vinegar

1/4 cup olive oil

1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese (or more to your liking)

In a saucepan, bring chicken stock (or water and bouillon cubes), garlic, and quinoa to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer until quinoa is tender and all water is absorbed, about 25 mins.

While quinoa is cooking, add chicken, onion, cucumber, olives, parsley, and chives to a large bowl.

When the quinoa is done, add quinoa to the bowl. Add salt, lemon juice, vinegar, and oil. Mix well. Add feta cheese and combine, or wait to add feta until serving to prevent it from melting.

Serve warm or refrigerate to serve cold.

Recipe adapted from allrecipes.

Additional mix-in ideas:

- Diced raw, sautéed, or roasted red pepper

- A can of chickpeas. I’ve done this in place of the chicken, or you can even add it in addition to the chicken for more protein. I bet it would also be good if you roasted the chickpeas first.

This recipe can easily be modified to be vegetarian or vegan.