Tabouli with Mango?

I love tabouli!  Especially when it is made with quinoa to make it more nutritious.  So I was feeling like some tabouli, but I had no tomatoes, parsley or mint, which to me are essentials in a classic tabouli.  So I decided to improvise and make tabouli with mango in place of the tomatoes and basil in place of the mint and parsley.  I threw in a few pine nuts as well...since this was becoming a non-traditional tabouli anyhow.  What resulted from my throw together tabouli was a super refreshing summery salad which I will definately be making again until the cool weather comes back in the fall.  Try it out if you would like a little different take on the classic grain salad!

Mango Basil Quinoa Tabouli Salad

2 cups water

1 cup quinoa, rinsed

1 large mango, diced small
1 large cucumber peeled, seeded and diced small
2 scallions, sliced
1/2 cup fresh basil leaves, minced
1/2 cup toasted pine nuts
2 Tbsp olive oil
1/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp lemon juice
1 Tbsp lemon zest
1 large garlic clove, minced
sea salt
freshly ground pepper

Place quinoa and water in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, cover and cook until all the water is absorbed about 15 minutes, or when all the grains have turned from white to transparent, and the spiral-like germ has separated. Drain, and let cool. When quinoa is cool, combine with the mango, cucumber, basil, scallions, and pine nuts. Whisk together olive oil, lemon juice, lemon zest, garlic, and sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste. Toss dressing with salad, and chill.