The combination of fresh herbs with the buttery taste of avocado and tangy feta is just out of this world When I make this salad for a crowd, it’s a hit every time. Chopping the herbs is the most time-consuming part of this recipe, the rest is done in a snap. I prefer to chop by hand to avoid the leaves getting dark – this is especially true if you are using mint.

Living in the Middle East, I am lucky to have access to a myriad of fresh, fragrant herbs but if you don’t have all of these, it really doesn’t matter, the important ones are the cilantro and parsley – the rest you can substitute with whatever you’ve got on hand.

 

Ingredients

1 cup of dry quinoa

A bunch of chopped parsley

A bunch of chopped coriander

A small bunch of za’atar (Lebanese wild thyme), fresh mint or dill

2-3 tbsp minced chives/basil/oregano

½ cup pomegranate

1 avocado, in cubes

¾ cup crumbled feta

1/2 cup good quality extra virgin olive oil

Juice of 1-2 lemons

1/2 tsp cumin

Salt (I use pink Himalayan)

Freshly ground pepper

Directions

1. Cook quinoa according to the package instructions. Let cool.
2. Mix all the herbs in a large bowl
3. Add the cooled quinoa
4. Mix in the pomegranate, avocado, feta, cucumber, radish and capers
5. In a small bowl, mix the lemon juice, oil, cumin, salt and pepper
6. Pour dressing over the salad and mix thoroughly