Inca Red Quinoa Tabbouleh

This is my variation on the Barefoot Contessa's tabbouleh recipe. She's such an inspiration - her recipes are lovely! This is so yummy! The Inca red quinoa is nutty and has a great texture. The colors are wonderful and it is a very lovely looking dish for gatherings and potlucks.

• Ready In: 1 hr 20 mins
• Serves: 8

Ingredients

• 1  cup  inca red quinoa
• 1 1⁄2 cups boiling water
• 1⁄4 cup fresh lemon juice (or juice of 1 1/2 lemons)
• 1⁄4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1 1⁄2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1  cup  minced scallion, white and green parts (1 bunch)
• 1  cup  chopped fresh mint leaves (1 bunch)
• 1  cup  chopped flat leaf parsley (1 bunch)
• 1  hothouse cucumber, unpeeled, seeded, and medium-diced
• 2  cups cherry tomatoes, cut in half (1 pint)
• 1  teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

Directions

1. Cook the quinoa, as on package directions, in boiling water with the lemon juice, olive oil, and 1 tsp of salt. Basically, bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer until all the liquid has been absorbed and quinoa's spiral-like germ has unfurled, about 20 minutes.
2. Stir and allow it to cool off for about 1 hour.
3. Add scallions, mint, parsley, cucumbers, tomatoes, rest of salt as needed, and pepper. Mix well. Season to taste, if more salt and/or pepper is needed. Be careful as to how much salt is used - it seems to come out more after the flavors have had a chance to meld in the refrigerator for a while!
4. Cover and refrigerate. The dish tastes glorious after it has sat in the refrigerator for a couple of hours before serving. However, you may serve right away. I find this is a good salad to make the day before wanting to serve it.