Quinoa, beetroot & sugar snap salad with marinated feta
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 45 mins
Serves: 4
This salad combines quinoa with 2 of my other favourite ingredients, roasted beetroot and marinated feta. Marinated feta makes everything taste better! I love adding it to salads, or simply crumbling over steamed veggies with a little grated lemon zest. Although if you are dairy free and can not indulge, try adding some chopped nuts instead of the feta for some added deliciousness.
Ingredients
-
4 medium beetroot, trimmed
-
2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
-
145g (¾ cup) quinoa, rinsed and drained
-
2 bunches broccolini, trimmed, cut into 4cm lengths
-
150g sugar snap peas, trimmed, sliced
-
2 celery sticks, trimmed, diced
-
¼ cup chopped fresh herbs (such as parsley, chives, mint)
-
75g marinated feta, crumbled
-
1 tablespoon oil from marinated feta jar (see tip)
-
1 tablespoon lemon juice
Method
1. Preheat oven to 200°C (180°C fan forced). Place the beetroots on a baking tray. Cover with foil and roast for 45-50 minutes, or until tender when pierced with a skewer. Set aside to cool. Once cool, peel beetroot and discard skins. Cut into small cubes, place in a small bowl and drizzle with the red wine vinegar.
2. Meanwhile, place quinoa and 350ml water in a medium saucepan. Bring to the boil over a high heat. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 12-15 minutes, or until water has evaporated. Transfer to a large bowl. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
3. Blanch the broccolini and sugar snaps in a saucepan of boiling water until just tender. Drain, refresh under cold running water. Drain again.
4. Add the broccolini, sugar snaps, celery and herbs to the quinoa. Add the oil from the marinated feta (or 1 tablespoon olive oil), the lemon juice and toss to combine. Gently stir through the crumbled feta. Serve topped with diced beetroot.
