Blistered Sweet Pepper and Marinated Feta Salad with Arugula and Quinoa
Quinoa is a superstar. With no gluten yet high in protein, it’s a perfect grain. It’s also sneaky, making sure it touches just about every ingredient in the salad so that with every forkful you get a sprinkling or more of quinoa. “Hey!” it says, “You can’t ignore me!” And who would want to? Here it blends perfectly with honey, dill, fruity olive oil, briny olives, sweet cherry tomatoes, earthy roasted peppers, and creamy, crumbly feta cheese.
Bring a large pot of water, 2 to 3 quarts, to a boil and add a touch of salt. Pour in quinoa and boil for 6 to 8 minutes. Turn off the heat and let sit for 3 minutes, then drain.
While quinoa is cooking, heat a sauté pan on high heat. Add peppers to the pan and cook for 1 minutes. Toss and cook for another minute. Turn off the heat and add a touch of olive oil. Season with salt and pepper and toss for 30 seconds. Let sit in the pan for 2 minutes, and then transfer to a plate to cool.
Mix the honey and olive oil in a large bowl. Add the tomatoes, feta, dill, parsley, and olives. Toss to combine.
Once peppers have cooled to close to room temperature, add to the large bowl along with the arugula and quinoa. Season with salt and pepper and an additional drizzle of olive oil to bring everything together.