I think you should use your imagination as far as what to substitute for the quinoa. I have used soaked bulgar, even though I later found out it's not raw. I think it tastes better than quinoa, though. As for how to prepare the ingredients, I have used a food processor and I've used a knife. Neither appears to be easier than the other, but that's mainly because the food processor I have is so small that I have to keep emptying it out after processing small portions of parsely, etc. If I had that Vitamix I could do chop everything more quickly. A good knife, though, makes the work go quickly. I chop the parsley into very small pieces, but the tomatoes and cucumbers are a bit bigger. Let me know when you make it!