Chopped Greek salad with quinoa and lentils

I have noticed that every summer I seem to gravitate to a go-to salad, one I can quickly whip up for a impromptu BBQ at a neighbors,  a dish to pass for a picnic, or maybe just for a quick fix dinner here.  Last year it was this Summer Squash with Feta and Herb Salad, the year before I defaulted to a super easy Watermelon Salad.

In the repertoire this year: Chopped Greek Salad with Quinoa and Lentils.  A perfect side salad for any grilled meats or fish.  A winner of a main course on it’s own if you or some of your guests are vegetarians.

I like that there are no crazy ingredients in play here. A can of lentils and box of quinoa from the pantry, olives and feta that are usually hanging out in my fridge with a cucumber and a pepper, a few tomatoes in different stages of ripeness that live on the kitchen counter, and a snip of the herbs from the garden. 

I think menu planning just got really easy if you invite me over this summer, because now you know what I will be bringing.

Ingredients

• 1- 12oz (1 1/12 cups) box of quinoa cooked to pkg directions and cooled, I cook in rice cooker
• 1 can cooked lentils, drained
• 1 seedless english cucumber, finely chopped
• 1 red pepper, finely chopped
• 1 green pepper, finely chopped
• 1 red onion, finely chopped
• 2 cups diced tomatoes
• 1 cup pitted black olives, sliced in half
• 6-8 oz of feta cheese, cubed
• Handful of chopped fresh herbs such as: oregano, mint, cilantro and chives

Dressing:

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• juice from 1 large lemon
• 1 large garlic clove minced
• 2 Tbsp dijon mustard
• salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

To large bowl add all the lentils, cooled quinoa and chopped vegetables.

In another bowl (I use a large measure cup) make the dressing.

Toss the salad with dressing, sprinkle with herbs, mix a bit more.

Serve at room temperature.

Find more of Pamela’s gluten free recipes at PamelasGlutenFreeRecipes.com.