I love a fresh start with the New Year. However, I’m usually feeling a little “full”. Full of all the rich foods, and yummy desserts. My clothes are feeling a little tighter too:(

So, every New Year, I have to go on a little “eat good food, avoid junk” diet.

That started today.

For lunch, we had a yummy salad that I got from one of my friends when she posted it on Facebook one day. I made a couple of alterations – like adding avocado (I love) and minusing olives (not so much). The salad is very good and super easy to make. It’s really good the next day (or two!) too.

Quinoa salad

4 cups chicken stock (or water – chicken stock just adds a nicer flavour)
2 cups quinoa
1 cup red pepper , diced
1 cup green pepper , diced
1 cup cucumber , diced
1/2 cup green onion , diced
1/2 cup black olives (optional)
1/2 cup red onion , diced
1 avocado, chopped in small pieces
5 ounces reduced-fat feta cheese

Dressing
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon basil
1/2 teaspoon oregano
pepper

In a pan, bring stock to a boil. Stir in quinoa. Reduce heat to med low and cover. Cook 12-15 minutes, until liquid is absorbed. Transfer to a large bowl and cool.

Mix in veggies and cheese into cooled quinoa (I’ve mixed it in when it was warm and it was pretty tastly anyways:). Mix together dressing ingredients. Pour over quinoa mixture and toss.

For dinner, we had:

Greek Tomato Pita Pizzas

I don’t really have a recipe, but it goes something like this:

Pita
Tomatoes (sliced thinly)
Feta cheese
Tiny bit of oil
Greek seasoning: garlic salt, pepper, oregano, basil.

Slice tomatoes and then layer on pita. Sprinkle with chopped feta. Throw on some seasonings and drizzle with some olive oil. Heat at 350 until pita is a bit crispy at the edge and feta is slightly soft and lightly browned.

Enjoy!