Quinoa Tabbouleh

Look at all of those great, bright flavors!

I always order tabbouleh with the best intentions, but between the heaviness of the bulgur and the ridiculous amount of parsley, its never my favorite.  A few weeks ago my mom had us over for a family dinner with BBQ chicken as the main course, so she made an extra side of tabbouleh for me, but used quinoa instead of bulgur.  Genius!  I made this tonight and it was great!  I love cooking at home because you can tailor everything exactly to your preferences!

Look at the cute little tomatoes I found in my garden this morning…hanging on to summer!

Quinoa Tabbouleh 
1 ½ c quinoa (2 1/2 c water)
¼ c lemon juice (about 1 lemon)
2 T olive oil
2 tsp salt
1 clove garlic, minced
½ tsp pepper

1 c tomato
1 c cucumber
½ c olives
¼ c lemon juice (about 1 lemon)
½ c parsley
1 c prepared beans, optional (garbanzos, lentils, etc…your choice!)

Prepare quinoa as directed, but cut the water a bit…you will be adding a dressing and if the quinoa is too wet it will get mushy.  Mix lemon juice, olive oil, salt, garlic, and pepper together.  Pour over warm quinoa and place in fridge to cool.  Prepare veggies and toss with lemon juice.  After quinoa begins to cool, add veggie mix and toss, then return to fridge until cool and ready to serve.  I prefer this served cold, but this is delicious warm too!  I served this with hummus, pita, and roasted asparagus.  Yum!

Delicious dinner, with an honorary drink for my baby sister who turned 21 today! Happy Birthday Gracie!