There has been a watermelon taking over my refrigerator for about a week now and no matter how much I try to push it on everyone as a delicious refreshing dessert, as well as making popsicles, which are still in my freezer, I am sort of left without ideas of how to use this delicious fruit and not let any go to waste.

Luckily my dear friend Anna writes a brilliant blog on 30 day goals that she sets for herself, with changing topics every month. This month is all about getting healthy and she posted a delicious recipe for a watermelon salad. Now I didn’t use her recipe, but the idea of watermelon and feta cheese sounded delectable, and I took the reigns from there adding quinoa for a little protein, sliced up a barattiere (we’ll call it a pugliese cucumber with distant relations to a melon) and threw in a purple onion that my dear friend Vito had grown in his garden.

Watermelon, Quinoa and Feta Cheese Salad

• 2 or 3 cups of watermelon, seeds removed and cut into 1/2-inch chunks
• 1 barattiere or cucumber, seeds removed, quartered and sliced
• 1 red onion, or green onion, sliced into rings (I like the flavor they give, but don’t like to eat them, this way they are big enough to pick out)
• 1 small bag of mache or any small tender lettuce or baby spinach
• 4 or 5 basil leaves, cut into slivers
• 1 cup feta cheese, crumbled
• 3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 1/2 cups of quinoa
• 3 cups of water for quinoa
• salt to taste

Make the quinoa ahead of time, you want it to be completely cool by the time you mix the salad. Rinse the quinoa thoroughly, and combine with the water and salt to taste in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce the heat to low. Simmer 15 to 20 minutes until the quinoa displays a little white spiral. Drain through a strainer, tap to remove excess water, then return the quinoa to the pot. Place a dish towel over the top of the pot, and return the lid. Let sit for 15 minutes. The quinoa should now be fluffy.

When the quinoa has cooled, transfer to a large salad bowl and add the watermelon, barattiere, onion, mache, basil and feta cheese. Drizzle the olive over the salad and toss until well blended.

Three Years Ago: Panzanella

~ by italicious on July 19, 2012.

Posted in basil, cucumber, formaggi, gluten free, mache, onions, vegetarian