I was never much of a quinoa fan until I tried the red quinoa salad at Mish Mish in Montclair, New Jersey. I fell in love with the salad and have been re-creating my own version ever since. This is a refreshing and yet hearty salad to serve as a side dish.

Ingredients:

1 cup red quinoa

1 teaspoon olive oil

water

8 ounces labne

1 large English cucumber or 2 Persian cucumbers, cut into 1/4-inch pieces

1 large beefsteak or Jersey tomato (diced), or pint cherry tomatoes (halved)

juice of 1/2 lemon plus 2 teaspoons zest

1/4 cup chopped flat leaf parsley

1/4 cup chopped fresh mint

salt and pepper to taste

additional extra virgin olive oil

Preparation:

Rinse quinoa well.

Place quinoa and 1 1/4 cups water, 1 teaspoon olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper into a small pot. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to low for 10 minutes. Remove from heat, fluff with a fork and cover again for another 5-10 minutes.

Mix quinoa with cucumbers, tomatoes, lemon juice and zest, mint, parsley, and salt and pepper to taste. This step can be prepared a day ahead and placed in the fridge.

When ready to serve, spread labne all over A large plate. Top labne with the quinoa tabbouleh. Drizzle with additional good-quality olive oil and an extra squeeze of lemon juice. Serve immediately.