04 September 2015

Quick Quinoa And Halloumi Salad - Great Picnic Food

• halloumi,
• haloumi,
• healthy eating,
• mint,
• parsley,
• picnic food,
• pomegranate,
• pomegranate seeds,
• quinoa,
• quinoa salad,
• salad,
• salad recipe

Quinoa Salad With Pomegranate Seeds, Olives And Parsley

Sophie recently been reminded of quinoa and a salad I made for a picnic earlier this summer.  We originally ate it together with several other salads and a whole array of other cold foods.

This quinoa salad has a lovely crunch and warm, nutty taste, which is balanced by the fresh flavours of the herbs and salad leaves.  Then there is the pleasant sourness and acidity from the olives, pomegranate seeds and salad dressing.

But perhaps the two things I like the best – firstly, it is ridiculously simple to make; and secondly it looks so very colourful from the multicoloured quinoa through to the greens of mint and parsley and the rich reds of the pomegranate seeds.

Then apparently it is very healthy – good for blood sugar levels and full of vitamins, especially vitamin B.

So taking the subtle hint, I made it again.

Quinoa Salad With Pomegranate Seeds and Halloumi Cheese

100g organic quinoa

2 tbsp black olives, pitted and chopped

3 tbsp pomegranate seeds

3 tbsp chopped fresh parsley

15 leaves fresh garden mint

10 – 15 salad leaves (ideally including some purples)

2 tbsp organic olive oil

1 tbsp organic lemon juice

Pinch sea salt

Pinch organic cracked black pepper

Rinse the organic quinoa thoroughly (this removes the soapiness that can sometimes happen when making quinoa).  Add 200ml water, bring to the boil and simmer for 15 minutes, drain and leave to cool.

Place the quinoa in a mixing bowl or salad bowl.  Add the chopped olives, pomegranate seeds, parsley, mint and salad leaves and mix together.

Mix together the olive oil, lemon juice, sea salt and black pepper to form an emulsion.  Pour over the quinoa salad and toss.

Grill the halloumi cheese slices until golden brown, tear in half and mix into the salad.