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Recipe

Mediterranean Quinoa Salad with Grilled Eggplant and Tofu

(Yield: 4 servings)

Ingredients

For the Quinoa Salad:

• 1 ¾ cups water
• ½ teaspoon sea salt
• 1 cup quinoa
• 1 cup seeded
• diced English cucumber (about ½ cucumber)
• 1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil
• 1 garlic clove,minced
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano
• 1 cup Kalamata olives,roughly chopped
•  1/3 cup crumbled feta cheese
• ½ small red onion, diced
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice

For the Grilled Tofu:

• ¼ cup lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano
• Sea salt
• freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 14 ounces extra firm tofu, drained, patted dry, cut into ½-inch slices

For the Grilled Eggplant:

• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 large eggplant, halved widthwise, cut into 1/2-inch slices
• Sea salt, to taste

Directions

To make quinoa salad:

1. In a small pot, bring water to a boil with salt. Add quinoa, turn heat down to a simmer, and cook until all water is absorbed, about 15 minutes. Turn heat off, and let stand covered, for another 10 minutes.
2. Allow quinoa to come to room temperature. Fluff with a fork.
3. In a large bowl, toss quinoa with remaining salad ingredients. Taste and season with salt, if needed.

To make grilled tofu:

1. Whisk together lemon juice, oil, garlic, oregano, salt and pepper in a small bowl.
2. In a shallow dish, coat tofu in marinade. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or up to 8 hours.
3. Heat a grill pan over medium-high heat. Cook tofu until browned, 3-4 minutes per side, basting occasionally with marinade.

To make grilled eggplant:

1. Combine olive oil and garlic, and brush eggplant on both sides. Season with salt.
2. Grill over medium-high heat until softened and browned, 4-5 minutes per side.

This post was originally published by the Natural Gourmet Institute. Learn more about today's Natural Gourmet Center.