Recipe: Simply Delicious Quinoa Tabouleh

This delicious recipe is by Kristin Doyle, RN, CNC from San Francisco. She is the author of Therapeutic chef: Recipes to prevent cancer, heart disease and diabetes (a vegan cookbook!)

QUINOA TABOULEH

(Serves 6)

Tabouleh is a middle-eastern dish typically made with bulgur wheat. This recipe uses quinoa, the ‘mother grain’ from South America for just a little extra boost in minerals and protein. Plus it contains lots of parsley, which is high in vitamins A and C, and iron, and is helpful in cleansing the blood, aiding in digestion and freshening the breath.

1 1⁄2 cups quinoa
3 cups vegetable broth (may substitute water)
2 garlic cloves, pressed
3 medium lemons, zest from 1, and juice from all 3
1⁄4 tsp unrefined sea salt or Himalayan salt
2 bunches fresh parsley, cleaned, trimmed, and rough chopped
1⁄4 cup fresh mint leaves
2 TBS olive oil
2 TBS flax seed oil
4 green onions, finely chopped
2 cups of diced tomatoes, seeded (multi-colored cherry tomatoes, halved, are nice)
1 medium fennel bulb, finely chopped, core discarded
1 carrot, scrubbed and shredded
1 cucumber, seeded and diced

Rinse quinoa thoroughly in a bowl of cold water. Pour off excess water. Drain well in a fine mesh strainer. Bring broth to a boil with the drained quinoa. Cover the pot and simmer for 15 minutes over low heat. Do not overcook the quinoa. Once it is tender remove from heat and transfer to a large glass or stainless steel bowl, draining if necessary to keep from getting mushy. Gently fluff with a fork and let cool.
Meanwhile, place garlic, lemon zest, juice, salt, parsley, mint and oils in a food processor and pulse to combine (you may need to do this in batches if you have a small food processor). Toss this mixture with the cooled quinoa and add the green onions, tomatoes, fennel, carrot and cucumber. Serve chilled or at room temperature.

*To make this dish a little more hearty you could add 1 cup of cooked chickpeas when you add the green onions.

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