June Recipes: Charred Courgette & Minted Quinoa Salad

A healthy nutritious courgette salad that's full of flavour and textures.

No boring salads allowed here! We're charring the courgettes to keep them firm while giving them a delicate smokey flavour, adding a creamy whipped feta, crispy quinoa and chickpeas then finishing off with fresh mint.

The end of June marks the start of summer, and with that comes courgette season. If you need a new and original way to use courgettes, try this delicious salad recipe.

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Ingredients (serves 2):

Whipped feta recipe:

• 200g feta

• 80g plain yogurt (4 Tbs)

• 1/2 lemon, juiced

Crispy quinoa and chickpeas:

• 1 can chickpeas

• 250g mixed quinoa, pre-cooked

• 2 tsp rose harissa

• 10g mint

• 1 lemon, juiced

• 1 Tbs EVOO

• Sea Salt

Charred courgettes:

• 2 courgettes

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Method:

How to make whipped feta:

1. Add all the ingredients to a food processor.

2. Blend until smooth and add a bit more yogurt if needed.

3. It will be a bit more liquid then desired. Store in the fridge for 1-2 hours until is hardens back up.

How to make charred courgettes:

1. If you have a gas hob: prick the courgettes all over with a fork then place them directly onto the flame. Rotate them every 2 minutes until they are completely blackened all over. Place them in a bowl and leave them covered until completely cooled down.

2. If you don't have a gas hob: prick the courgettes all over with a fork, rub them in oil and cover them in foil. Place on a baking tray and cook for 40 minutes in a 200°C oven. Turn the oven off and leave to cool down. With this method, the courgettes will go soft rather than staying firm, but this is absolutely delicious too!

3. Peel the charred skin off the courgettes and slice them into quarters lengthways. Or dice them up into small bite-sized chunks if you're planning on taking the salad on the go. If you've gone for the oven method and they're a bit soft, just tear them apart and spoon it on top of the salad at the end.

How to make crispy quinoa and chickpeas:

1. Add 1 Tbs of vegetable oil to a frying pan on a medium-high heat.

2. Drain rinse and dry the chickpeas with a kitchen towel.

3. Once the oil is smoking, add the chickpeas to the pan along with the pre-cooked mixed quinoa. and the harissa paste

4. Fry for 5-8 minutes on medium-high, stirring occasionally, until the quinoa is crispy and the chickpeas have started to brown on the outside.

5. Turn off the heat and season the mix with sea salt, the juice of 1/2 lemon, 1 Tbs of EVOO and lots of torn up mint leaves.

How to make charred courgette and minted quinoa salad:

1. Spoon the whipped feta onto a plate and season with a bit of cracked black pepper.

2. Spoon the minted quinoa and chickpea mix on top of the feta.

3. Finish off with the slices of smokey courgette, a final drizzle of EVOO and a few extra mint leaves.

4. Bon appétit!

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More about this easy salad recipe:

Recipe shortcuts:

• If you don't have time to let the whipped feta harden up in the fridge, just use half the amount of yogurt. This will mean that the whipped feta isn't as smooth and airy but it will still be delicious.

• You can slice and fry off the courgettes in a pan then add the chickpeas and quinoa if you would like to remove a few steps. This will be delicious but won't have the added smokiness and texture from cooking them separately.

Keys to success:

• This is quite an easy recipe but if you have any problems/questions please leave a comment on this recipe so I can help.

Health benefits of courgettes:

They're a good source of:

• biotin which enables us to release energy from food and supports cell health;

• folate which supports the formation of red blood cells;

• potassium which controls the balance of bodily fluids, and supports the heart muscle;

• vitamin K which contributes to blood clotting and therefore healing wounds, but also supports bone health and cognitive function.
  

Their seeds and skin are also a good source of powerful polyphenols and other antioxidants. They have antibacterial, anti-fungal, anti-inflammatory, hepatoprotective (support liver health) and anti-cancer properties, in part due to their cucurbitacins content. Often, cooking will reduce the nutrient content of food, but research showed that antioxidant content increases when frying courgette.

In particular, their seeds contain specific triterpenoid compounds which are toxic to certain cancer cells including skin cancer.

Courgettes also contain a pigment called zeaxanthin which helps prevent cancer like all other antioxidants but also protects your eyes from ageing, protects your skin from UV, and some research indicates it may be beneficial to cognitive function.

Finally, the protein mavicyanin was isolated in their skin but its function has not yet been identified.

A moment of calm:

Folate - required to synthesise serotonin, one of our good mood hormones.

Potassium - high potassium is associated to lower cortisol levels therefore reducing anxiety and stress. It is also required to allow serotonin to function effectively as a neurotransmitter for happy thoughts.

Hopefully this makes you excited to try this and many other courgette recipes during courgette season!

You can find lots of ideas on how to cook courgettes in my newsletter: https://felicityvincent.substack.com/

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Full Video:

Cook along with this step-by-step video and learn how to make whipped feta and my charred courgettes & minted quinoa salad.

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Photos:

whipped feta