This is a lovely recipe that I wanted to share with you all because it’s one of my absolute favorites and perfect for Spring! ?????
This Roasted Eggplant Zucchini Noodle Salad is made with some roasted eggplant, quinoa, feta cheese, mint and pomegranate seeds which are all lightly drizzled in this gorgeous vinaigrette dressing I made with Seven Barrels Blood Orange Olive Oil + Black Currant Balsamic Vinegar which makes the salad even more #delish!
Start out by first cutting up your eggplant into medium size chunks, drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper. Roast in the oven on a sheet pan for about 25 minutes until soft and golden. Cook quinoa according to package directions and drain, fluff with a fork. Make your zucchini spirals with a spiralizer (or you can shave long, thin slices with a mandoline) and drizzle with a little olive oil and salt and pepper and sauté for a few minutes.
Then toss the roasted eggplant and cooked quinoa in a bowl with the zucchini noodles. Top with feta cheese, pomegranate arils, and mint leaves. Drizzle with the Blood Orange Black Currant vinaigrette dressing and toss together with the salad. Season the zucchini noodles with salt and pepper to taste.
Feel free to substitute crumbly queso cheese, goat cheese, burrata, mozzarella or any other mild cheese you like. You can also use cooked wild rice, farro or any other ancient grain you like (amarynth, teff, etc.) for the quinoa – or leave it out all together to make the recipe #keto/#lowcarb/#atkins-friendly. If you can’t find fresh pomegranate arils, the salad would be delicious with either some fresh baby tomatoes or roasted red peppers. Soooo good and #healthy!
Have a great weekend everyone, stay safe, stay healthy and enjoy 🙂
This Roasted Eggplant Zucchini Noodle Salad with roasted eggplant, quinoa, feta, pomegranate + mint is super #fresh and #healthy and the perfect light meal to start off the weekend! Drizzled in a @7Barrels Blood Orange + Black Currant balsamic vinaigrette makes this even more absolutely #delish!
Ingredients
- 1 medium Italian eggplant
- ¼ cup plus 1 tablespoon Seven Barrels Blood Orange Olive Oil, divided
- 1-2 tablespoons Seven Barrels Black Currant Balsamic Vinegar
- Sea salt, to taste, plus more for serving
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 1-2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
- ½ cup water
- ¼ cup dry quinoa
- 2 zucchinis spiral sliced or made into ribbons with a wide peeler
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon grainy Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon honey
- Ground black pepper, to taste
- ½ cup pomegranate arils or cherry tomatoes, halved
- ½ cup feta cheese, for garnish
- Handful fresh mint, roughly chopped, for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 475ºF.
- Cut eggplant into 1-inch cubes. On a rimmed baking sheet, toss eggplant with ¼ cup Seven Barrels Blood Orange Olive Oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast until browned and tender, about 25 minutes. Toss with 1-2 tablespoons Seven Barrels Black Currant Balsamic Vinegar and chopped parsley.
- Meanwhile, bring salted water and quinoa to a boil in a medium saucepan. Reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and let steam with cover on for 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork.
- For the dressing, in a small bowl, combine 1 tablespoon of Seven Barrels Blood Orange Olive Oil, lemon juice, grainy Dijon mustard, honey, and ground pepper. Season with salt, to taste.
- Squeeze any excess water out of the zucchini noodles with a tea towel or paper towels. Add 1 tablespoon of Seven Barrels Blood Orange Olive Oil in a large sauté pan and cook the noodles for about 2-3 minutes, toss in the cooked quinoa and mix together.
- Pour the dressing over the cooked quinoa and zucchini; toss well to combine and transfer to a serving bowl. Top with roasted eggplant, pomegranate arils or cherry tomatoes, feta cheese and mint, to serve. Drizzle with an additional small amount of dressing, and additional salt and pepper to taste, if desired.
Notes
Feel free to substitute cojita cheese, goat cheese, burrata, mozzarella or any other mild cheese you like.
You can also substitute wild rice or farro or any other ancient grain you like (amarynth, teff, etc.) for the quinoa (or leave it out all together to make the recipe keto/low carb/atkins friendly.
Other Zucchini Noodles #recipes you may enjoy:
Shrimp, Basil & Corn Zucchini Noodles w/ Meyer Lemon Cream Sauce
