Quinoa with Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Feta

Our second quinoa dish was an even bigger success than the first one! I found this recipe on the popular food blog, Amateur Gourmet, and it is rightly named "The Quinoa Converter." You can't not like quinoa after trying this recipe. Similar to the rice dish I made two weeks ago, this is basically a salad with vegetables. My variation on the Amateur Gourmet's recipe is below:

Quinoa with Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Feta
Adapted from the Amateur Gourmet
Serves 3

2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
Extra virgin olive oil
Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 cups water
1/2 cup uncooked quinoa
1/4 cup Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons honey
1/4 cup white wine vinegar
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup walnut halves, toasted and then chopped
1/2 cup crumbled feta
1 handful parsley, chopped
1-2 tablespoons chopped thyme

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Toss the sweet potatoes in a tablespoon or two of olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast on a baking sheet for 20-30 minutes or until lightly browned and soft. Set aside.

2. Meanwhile, bring 2 cups of water to a boil; salt generously. Add the quinoa and reduce to a simmer. Cover and cook for 15-20 minutes, or until the water has been absorbed and the quinoa is tender. Transfer to a large bowl.

3. While the quinoa is cooking, make the dressing. In a medium bowl, whisk together the mustard, honey and vinegar. Continue whisking and slowly drizzle in the olive oil. Season with salt and pepper.

4. Pour half of the dressing over the still warm quinoa and mix with a rubber spatula. Add the sweet potatoes, walnuts, feta and herbs. Stir and add more dressing to taste. Season with salt and pepper if necessary. When packaging up my leftovers, I added a bit more dressing to the tupperware, so it wouldn't dry out and I still had about 1/2 cup dressing left over.