PREP: 40 minutes BAKE: 8 minutes OVEN: 375°F MAKES 6 servings
11⁄2 cups water
3⁄4 cup uncooked quinoa, rinsed and drained
2 6- to 7-inch pita bread rounds
1 15- to 16-ounce can garbanzo beans (chickpeas), rinsed and drained
11⁄4 cups chopped, seeded cucumber (1 medium)
1 cup chopped tomato (1 large)
3⁄4 cup chopped yellow sweet pepper (1 medium)
1⁄4 cup chopped red onion
2 tablespoons crumbled feta cheese
3 tablespoons lemon juice
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons finely snipped fresh mint
1 teaspoon snipped fresh marjoram or oregano
1 clove garlic, minced
1⁄4 teaspoon salt
1⁄4 teaspoon ground black pepper
Additional crumbled feta cheese or garlic herb-flavored soy cheese (optional)
Lemon wedges (optional)
1 Preheat oven to 375°F. In a medium saucepan bring the water to boiling. Add quinoa; reduce heat. Simmer, covered, about 15 minutes or until tender. Drain if necessary. Spread quinoa into a shallow baking pan and let stand to cool to room temperature. Transfer cooled quinoa to a large bowl.
2 Meanwhile, halve pita rounds horizontally and tear into 1-inch pieces. Place pieces in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until light brown and crisp. Cool.
3 Add toasted pita pieces, drained garbanzo beans, cucumber, tomato, sweet pepper, onion, and the 2 tablespoons feta cheese to the quinoa; stir to combine.
4 For dressing, in a screw-top jar combine lemon juice, olive oil, mint, marjoram, garlic, salt, and pepper. Cover and shake well.
5 Drizzle dressing over quinoa mixture; toss to coat well. If desired, sprinkle with additional feta cheese and serve with lemon wedges.
PER SERVING: 312 cal., 10 g total fat (2 g sat. fat), 3 mg chol., 457 mg sodium, 47 g carb., 6 g fiber, 10 g pro.
Vegan Icon make it vegan
Substitute crumbled feta-flavor soy cheese for the feta cheese.
