Chicken, SaladMalia Howe

Greek Style Quinoa Salad Bowl

Chicken, SaladMalia Howe
Greek Style Quinoa Salad Bowl

This was a winner, though it began in failure. You see, I had made dinner Monday night that I just thought we were going to love. This dinner consisted of cooked quinoa, chicken/apple sausages sauteeed with onions, and topped with cheesy scrambled eggs. I tried salsa. I tried hot sauce. I tried ketchup. Nothing worked to make me like it. Worse, my husband actually said the words "I don't like it".  The man almost never says that when a plate of food is set in front of him. So, what to do? Well, I had about a million cups of cooked quinoa that I did not want to throw away, and I knew I wanted to do something "bowl style". I found a recipe in my Pinterest files that included a spicy tzatziki sauce for a Greek salad on quinoa and I knew this was the one. I am always in when it comes to Greek salad. My taste buds were happy, happy, happy. This was fabulous, and really fun to put together. This would make a great lunch for hosting friends--simply set out the quinoa and various toppings and let everyone go to town. There are a million variations on this, so exercise your imagination and enjoy your food.

Loaded Greek Style Quinoa Bowls
-adapted from cookingwithcakes.com

For the spicy tzatziki:
Mix together--

 

  • 1 cup Fat Free Greek Yogurt
  • 1/2 cup Minced Cucumber (peel and seed first)
  • 2 T Minced Fresh Dill (fresh is important. It really makes this sauce)
  • 2 T Minced Garlic
  • 2 T Lemon Juice
  • 1 T Sriracha

For the salad:

 Cook 2 cups dry quinoa according to package directions (this will make a lot of bowls--probably about 8, so adjust accordingly if you don't want leftovers. To make each bowl, scoop in some quinoa and then top with the following:

-Greens of your choice (I used mixed greens--but kale, spinach, arugula...all good choices)--drizzle these with a little olive oil or vinaigrette and toss first, just to give some extra flavor

-artichoke hearts (I used plain canned ones that I drained well and chopped)

-feta

-kalamata olives

-halved cherry or grape tomatoes (I think sun dried tomatoes would also be nice)

-chopped cucumber

-protein of your choice--we used roasted chicken that i marinated in Greek seasoning first, but leftover grilled chicken, shrimp, fish, steak would all work, as would Garbanzo beans for a vegetarian option)

 

Toss your bowl together and drizzle with the sauce.