Quinoa-Mint Salad

YAY! My mint has exploded in the cool shady spot I found for it, on the back patio at our new place. I've made gallons of tea and dried a good bit for winter. But today a salad seemed to be calling to me, and since I didn't really have ingredients for tabbouleh, I decided to make this quinoa salad instead.

If you've never tried quinoa, this is a super-easy recipe to start with, and it's SOO good! Quinoa is a lovely (and very nutritious) grain, actually a seed, that's tasty and fast to cook. Follow the directions on the box, that's all there is to it, I really don't have any amazing quinoa-cooking tips (sorry) but it's pretty fool-proof!
You can find quinoa in the grains or Natural Foods sections of most grocery stores.
Quinoa-Mint Salad

• 1 cup dry quinoa, cooked according to package directions. I do mine in my rice-cooker with excellent results.

• 1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 Tablespoon fresh-squeezed lemon juice
• 3 green onions, sliced with as much of the green part as is tender
• 1/3 cup, or more, chopped fresh peppermint leaves
• 1 clove garlic, crushed in garlic press
• Salt and lemon-pepper to taste
• chopped nuts (optional)

Cook quinoa according to package instructions until light and fluffy. Remove from heat and cool on a cookie sheet (this just helps it cool faster).

In a bowl, mix olive oil, garlic and lemon juice into quinoa. Add mint, salt and lemon-pepper, and mix well.

Sprinkle with chopped almonds or other nuts if you so desire. I just happened to have them on hand today.

Serve chilled or at room temp.