Quinoa Salad

I am such a great hostess. ~tap, tap~ (that's me patting myself on the back).  I cooked so many meals while my sister was visiting.  She wanted the recipe for this Quinoa Salad that I made while she was here, so I said I would post it to the blog so it looks like I haven't been slacking on my February posts.

Quinoa Salad:
1/2 cup quinoa
1 cup water
1 diced green pepper
1 1/2 cups shredded carrots
1/4 cup minced sun-dried tomatoes
2 T. feta

Dressing:
2 tsp. dijon mustard
1 T. red wine vinegar
1 tsp. olive oil

1.  Rinse quinoa prior to cooking.  Combine water in quinoa in a saucepan and boil.  Reduce heat, cover, and simmer about 10 minutes until the liquid is absorbed.

2.  Whisk dressing ingredients together in a small bowl.  Season with salt and pepper.

3.  Combine quinoa with green pepper, carrots, and tomatoes in a bowl.  Stir in dressing.  Top individual servings with a bit of feta.

Tips:
*Red quinoa holds up better in the cooking process and is better for salads.

*Don't forget to rinse the quinoa quite well, even if the package says it's pre-rinsed.  This gets rid of the bitter-tasting saponins, which also cause sort of an unsightly soapy film when the quinoa is cooked.

*Use some oil from the sun-dried tomato jar for the dressing.

*I like to reduce the vinegar and add more mustard for the dressing; adjust it to your own preference.