Quinoa with mixed veggies and feta

I recently paid a visit to my culinarily challenged Jewish friend Shelby (I'm not a big fan of ethnic or religious profiling, but she wished to be identified as such). We'd both had a less than ideal week, and needed something uplifting, and hearty, but healthy at the same time. We settled on quinoa, which is one of those super-hip buzz foods that has so much protein in it that you'll think you're on ketamine after eating it. The veggies and cheese in this dish give it the flavour that quinoa itself naturally lacks, making this a simple staple dish that you can enjoy (guilt-free) again and again!

Photo credit to Shelby's iPhone

Makes 4-6 servings, depending on gastronomic capacity

Ingredients:
4 cups vegetable stock
2 cups quinoa
1 large carrot, diced
1 medium zucchini, diced
6oz crumbled or cubed feta cheese
½ a large white onion, or one small white onion, finely chopped
1 teaspoon yellow mustard seeds
1 clove of garlic, crushed
1 red bell pepper, finely chopped
1 teaspoon chilli powder
1 teaspoon cumin
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 teaspoon pepper

Method:
In a large saucepan, bring 3 ½ cups of the vegetable stock to the boil and add the quinoa. Add 1 teaspoon of olive oil and pepper. Cover and reduce to a simmer for about 20 minutes or until the water has been absorbed.
While the quinoa cooks, in a separate saucepan, heat the remaining olive oil on a medium heat. Add the mustard seeds and cover immediately. Cook for about 60 seconds, watching carefully so that they do not burn.
Add the onion and cook for about 7 minutes until the onions are translucent.
Add the garlic and spices and cook for a further 2 minutes.
Add the vegetables and the remaining ½ cup of vegetable stock.
Cover and cook for about 10-15 minutes, until all the vegetables are tender.
When the vegetables are ready and the quinoa has absorbed the water, add the vegetables to the quinoa, mixing gently.
Stir in the feta and serve to a hungry, culinarily challenged Jewish friend.