OIL-FREE MEDITERRANEAN SALAD
This salad is fantastic! It is supposed to be made with farro but I didn't have any so substituted quinoa pasta. I got the recipe for the salad and the vegan feta from Caroline Meahl on a WFPB Facebook page (she can be found on Instagram @happier_meahl). The original recipe for the salad came from "Show Me The Yummy": Mediterranean Farro Salad.
What is farro? Read this brief article which explains it well.
Ingredients:
1 cup farro (uncooked)
1/4 cup diced red onion
1/2 cup diced red pepper (about 1 medium red pepper)
1/2 cup diced green pepper (about 1 medium green pepper)
1/2 cup diced cucumber (about 1/2 cucumber)
1/4 cup kalamata olives, chopped
1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp dried dill
1/8 tsp salt
*Optional - 1/4 cup vegan crumbled feta (see recipe below)
Instructions:
- Bring 8 cups veggie broth to a boil on high heat in a large pot, then add 1 cup rinsed farro, return to boil, then turn heat to medium-high and cook for 30 minutes.
- While farro is cooking, finely dice all the veggies and place all ingredients in a large bowl (except the red wine vinegar and seasonings).
- Once farro is done cooking, drain and let cool at least 10 minutes (do not rinse), then add to bowl with veggies and stir to combine. Then add the red wine vinegar, stir around, then add seasonings and stir to well combine.
- Cover and chill in fridge (at least 1 hour) until ready to serve! Taste and re-season, if necessary, before serving. This is a great make-ahead dish and can be stored in the fridge up to 5 days.
INGREDIENTS FOR VEGAN FETA CHEEZ:
14oz firm tofu, drained and pressed
1 Tbsp nutritional yeast
2 Tbsp white miso paste
2 Tbsp lemon juice
1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp onion powder
INSTRUCTIONS FOR VEGAN FETA CHEEZ:
Place all ingredients in food processor and and puree until very smooth.
Place tofu mixture into a sealable Tupperware container or bowl. Cover and place in the fridge, allow it to firm up overnight.
My changes and notes:
-As stated in the intro, I did not have farro. I cooked 2 cups of dry quinoa pasta per package instructions in water since no need for the vegetable broth.
-Used 1/3 cup finely chopped red onion
-Didn't have red bell pepper. Used 3/4 cup chopped yellow banana pepper instead and used a total of 1 cup chopped green bell pepper.
-Doubled the cucumber
-Used 1/3 cup sliced kalamata olives because it's what I had left
-Mixed the vinegar and dressing seasonings in a small bowl before adding to the salad
-Made 1/2 batch of the vegan feta using extra firm tofu. It never firmed up but I still dropped small dollops onto the salad then used as dip for the breadsticks.
