This Feta and Herb Quinoa Salad is a great prep day recipe to enjoy as a side salad or a base recipe to add proteins for quick lunches or dinners.
Feta and Herb Quinoa Salad
This feta and herb quinoa salad was our base prep day salad all last week. I enjoyed it with leftover salmon on top and a hard-boiled egg another day! I tend to leave proteins out of my salads on purpose so that they can either be a side or a base, depending on what I have on hand. I can use leftovers from dinners to customize it each day. Quinoa has a decent amount of protein on its own, so I’m fine having it with healthy fats and sauces too!
Here’s an example of how I used it as a base and added avocado, greek yogurt, and BBQ sauce for a wild combo!
Main Ingredients
Quinoa
1.5 cups dry cooked to your liking. You could also use other grains here like farro or rice!
Red pepper
I love red peppers, but you could sub in green or any raw vegetables you like, including tomatoes!
Blueberries
A fun sweet surprise, raisins would work too!
Feta cheese
I always buy a block of feta and crumble it myself because I think the texture is so much better!
Fresh mixed herbs
I used a combination of dill, basil, parsley, and thyme. Whatever you have in your garden. Or if you just want to buy one bunch from the store, I’d go with parsley.
Marcona almonds
Marcona almonds are my favorite almonds, but any kind of nut or simple slivered almonds would be delish. Note they will lose their crunch a bit over time, so you may choose to leave these out and add when it’s eatin’ time.
How to make it
Toss it all together! Super simple. Note that I like to hold the nuts until I’m ready to eat so they stay crunchy. I also just lightly dress this with lemon and olive oil because as a prep day salad most of the dressing would absorb anyways. I add any dressings or sauces when I’m ready to eat!
The Recipe
Feta and Herb Quinoa Salad
Ingredients
- 1.5 cups quinoa cooked
- 1 red pepper chopped
- 1/2 cup blueberries
- 1/2 cup crumbled feta
- 3-4 tbsp Mixed fresh herbs
- Juice of one lemon
- 2-3 tbsp olive oil to taste
- Lots of salt and pepper
Instructions
- Cook quinoa according to package.
- Toss quinoa with pepper, blueberries, feta, herbs.
- Drizzle with lemon and olive oil and toss. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Add nuts when serving to maintain their crunch.
Charmaine Ng | Architecture & Lifestyle Blog says
This looks really good! Thanks for sharing! 🙂
Charmaine Ng | Architecture & Lifestyle Blog
http://charmainenyw.com
Kori says
What a fun combination of ingredients! I love sweet and salty together.
Kath Younger says
Me too!
Leah says
Hi Kath,
This salad looks awesome and I will definitely be trying it soon! Random question unrelated to today’s post. Do you use a lip balm with SPF? I am on the hunt for one with safe ingredients and haven’t come across any good options yet. I have loved your recommendations in the past. : ) Thanks.
Kath Younger says
My sister loves this company: https://portlandbeebalm.com/
JuicerGirl says
I have been craving something fresh and different for some time now. All the junk food I had indulged in for the past few years have finally got me thinking. So I am starting a new lifestyle including loads of fresh produce, juices and smoothies. So, for starters I have been making lots of juices and eating loads of salads. But, I got bored with the my mom’s salad recipes and started looking for new ones. Yours caught my eye as I had the ingredients on hand. It was awesome, different just what I needed, lovely and delicious. Thank you.