Quinoa

Is anyone still here?!  I hope so.  I know we're all busy and whatnot, but I still come back regularly for a recipe here and there, so in case any of you do, I thought I'd post a couple that I've loved lately.

The first was found at Eating Well, although I did change it slightly.  This is SOOO simple, but so tasty.  I was actually quite surprised at just HOW tasty it was for just a few ingredients.  I served it with a side of sweet potato fries and a salad, and even my husband loved it. He's been struggling lately with my vegetarian fare and his exact response to this meal was, "If every meal was like this I'd have no problem being a vegetarian!"  It was tasty, colorful and appealing and satisfying in that clean but not heavy sort of way.  I imagine the leftovers would be quite tasty on a salad....but there weren't any left to try the next day!

Quinoa and Black Beans
1 c. red quinoa
2 c. broth
EVOO
1/2 red onion, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 can black beans
Salt to taste

Combine quinoa and broth and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat, cover and simmer about 15 minutes or until the liquid is absorbed.  Meanwhile, coat the bottom of a pan in EVOO, and cook the red onion and bell pepper until tender.  Stir in the black beans and quinoa.  Season and serve.  Top with a smidge of cheese and some salsa if you like.

The next recipe comes from Bev Cooks.  It was FABULOUS.

Kidney Bean and Quinoa Tacos
1 c. red quinoa
1 can dark red kidney beans
2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, (watch this if you don't like heat! I thought it was tasty at 2, but it was just at the threshold for kiddos I think)
2 cloves of garlic
1/2 c. cilantro leaves
1 lime, halved

Add quinoa to 2 cups water.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat, cover and simmer 15 minutes or until liquid is absorbed.

In a food processor combine half the kidney beans, chipotle peppers, garlic, cilantro and juice from half of the lime.  Process until smooth.

Add the rest of the kidney beans to the quinoa whole.  Add the pureed mixture.  Warm through and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Use the mixture as a taco filling.....the original post suggests topping with pumpkin seeds.  We didn't have those on hand and used sunflower seeds instead and it was so good to have that extra crunch.  We also topped ours with avocado, pepper jack cheese, (which lately is the reason I can't give up dairy...LOVE IT!) and lettuce on a warmed corn tortilla.  Squeezing a little extra lime juice on really puts it over the top too.  This also reheats really nicely.  It crisps up a bit and gives it more of a mock meat texture when reheated in a pan.

And, as an added bonus to you my veggie lovin' friends, a picture of the newest Morgan baby.  Isn't he gorgeous?!

 And now the toes....cause I can't resist!

Hope you are all well!

Skillet Gnocchi with Spinach and White Beans

Recipe HERE.

Yumm people. Yumm.

Because the recipe didn't have me boil the gnocchi (we found a whole wheat version that used sweet potatoes), I did 2 cans of italian tomatoes instead of just the one and let it simmer a while before adding the cheese. I did 15 oz (1 1/2 bags) of spinach and it was great.

So, so, yummy!!!

ETL- Susan's Take

Hi friends!

I have a friend in my ward named Susan. She has a Masters Degree in Nutrition. I love to chat with her, get her opinions and etc. She's a great cook and I know that she feeds her family excellently.

Well... she was looking for a book to read and I asked her to read Eat to Live. I wanted to know whether the science he sites is sound, and if he was accurately representing the research.

She felt like he was using good studies, and that he did not make any claims beyond what the research/science supports (which she HAS seen people do in other books). She approved! In fact, she was actually disappointed. She thought based on how I described the book to her that it was going to be really extreme and radical-- but in her opinion it wasn't. Isn't that nice to hear? SO many people find the way we are trying to eat as extreme!

She's someone whose opinion on food matters to me, and I just thought I would share her validating opinion with you too :)

Hope your week is off to a good start!

-A

Raw Pate Spread

3 Cups sunflower seed or pecans ( i use sunflower seed because they are less $) 1/4 cup lemon juice (may need a little more) 1/3 cup olive oil 4 dates 1 bunch of parsley or cilantro (either is great. i do like the cilantro a little more). dash of salt 3-5 cloves of garlic Mix seeds or pecans first. Add the rest of the ingredients. You may need to add a little more lemon juice or olive oil to make it sticky (like play dough sticky). I like to buy baby portabella mushroom from Costco ($5) and Kalamata olives from Costco ($7.50 for a huge jar), stuff the mushrooms and top it with an olive. You can also take big slices of red cabbage and spread it on that. Today I used nori sheets (like for sushi), put the spread on, thin slices of avocado,olives, carrots and celery. So yummy! You could stuff small peppers etc. Ps there is just something about the Kalamata olives that taste so good with this.

Raw Pomegranate Oatmeal

If you like pomegranate juice, you'll love this.  Just soak some rolled oats in pomegranate juice in the fridge for a few hours. You can also add raisins or craisins which plump up during the soak.  It is super delicious!

For Alysa

This recipe is dedicated to my friend Alysa who reads this blog. Friends... you may be interested to know that she is the author of a delightful book blog! Find that HERE. She often blogs about children's books and I know we are all on the look out for good ones!

The reason this post is dedicated to her is because it uses dry beans which I know she has an abundance of and wants to use! When we made this last night and really liked it, I wanted to share it with her and I know that she reads this blog. This one's for you friend!

Slow Cooker Garden Vegetable Sauce with Chickpeas (From America's Test Kitchen)

2 tbsp olive oil
3 onions, minced (I did one whole and it was great!)
2 carrots, peeled, halved lengthwise and cubed (I did 4 carrots. just 2? They must have been large!)
8 garlic cloves, minced
1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/4 cup flour
2 cups veggie broth
2 cups water
1 1/4 cups dry chickpeas, picked over and rinsed
2 bay leaves (Alysa, if you need some I have a ton! Beachy's sells them for super cheap!)
1 zucchini, quartered lengthwise and cubed
2 tomatoes, cored and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
6 oz baby spinach (6 cups)
salt and pepper
parmesan cheese- optional
Short Pasta to serve over (we used a whole grain penne. It was great! The picture has it over regular bow tie pasta. I wish they made a whole grain bow tie! I also think this would be good over rice)

Cook onion, carrots, garlic and red p flakes in oil till onions are soft. Stir in flour and cook 1 min. Slowly stir in 1 cup of the veg broth to thicken, avoiding lumps. Transfer to slow cooker. Stir water, chickpeas, remaining broth and bay leaves into slow cooker. Cover and cook until chickpeas are tender (9-11 hrs. on low, 5-7 on high). Stir in zucchini, cover and cook on high until tender (15-20 min). Discard bay leaves. Stir in tomatoes and spinach and let sit till heated through and spinach wilts (5 min). Stir in salt and pepper before serving. Serve over cooked pasta with parmesan if desired.

Hope your week is off to a good start ladies!

Slow Cooker Ratatouille

Guys! I made my own recipe today! It wasn't as beautiful as my fancy ratatouille, but the flavor was very nearly the exact same. And you know what? I have decided I am not in a 'fancy ratatouille' phase of life. I am in a 'slow cooker ratatouille' phase of life. And I am coming to terms with that!

Ashlee's Slow Cooker Ratatouille

4 small zucchini or summer squash or both, chopped in bite size pieces (cubes not circles)
1 large eggplant, chopped a bit larger than the squash (skin on)
1-2 bell peppers (red, orange or yellow work best!), seeded and diced
6 -7 cloves garlic, smooshed and minced
1/2-1 whole onion, chopped fine
1 (28 oz) can diced tomatoes with juices
1 (6oz) can italian style tomato paste
salt, pepper, italian seasoning and red pepper flakes to taste
a squeeze of agave or a bit of sugar (2 tsp?)

Crusty bread, or cooked brown rice, or couscous to serve with or as a base to put the ratatouille atop. (We did ours over brown rice which was good, but I was thinking this would make a good sandwich with toasted garlic crostini and some mozzarella!)

Sour cream to serve with (The french would find me sacrilegious I'm sure for putting sour cream on ratatouille, but I don't care! We like it! Corey likes his without though, and the baby had his without too.)

Cook until the veggies are mushy but not disintegrated.

That's it! Pretty easy, and it made the house smell so good. I am a ratatouille addict! And I am so glad the whole family likes it too. Even the baby thought it was delish!

Main Dish Mango Salad -yummmm

Hi guys!

I have been scouring the Earth in search of yummy, main dish salad recipes. Do you get sick of your standbys? I do. We had this one tonight and lu-huved it! The dressing is particularly good!

*** Note: I like to put recipes in their original form, but I don't mind saying right now that to keep costs down I did brown rice and canola oil instead of quinoa and safflower oil. I also added black beans to make it more substantial. Also: I didn't think all the salt in the recipe was necessary, and probably some of you won't either, but next time I actually do plan to add it all.

Mango Salad - (Whole Food Mommies)

mix together and set aside:

1 tomato, chopped
1 cucumber, chopped
1 avacado, chopped
1/2 red onion, chopped
1 bell pepper (any color), chopped
1 mango, chopped (I used 2 and I can't imagine using less)
1 cup chopped jicama (I shredded- so much easier, and I would call this ingredient optional but yummy)
2 tablespoons lemon juice
salt to taste
chopped fresh cilantro (optional)

on each serving plate lay:

greens of choice (plain jane romaine worked great for me!)

topped with:

cooked, cooled quinoa
(this is where I added the black beans)

When serving, top greens/quinoa with the mango mixture and dressing (recipe below)

Mango Lime Dressing

1 cup fresh mango
1/2 cup safflower oil
1/4 cup agave
1/4 cup lime juice
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1 teaspoon fresh ginger, grated
2 teaspoons sea salt
1 clove garlic

blend in blender or food processor until smooth.

We also like whole food mommies "Tiffany's Waldorf Pitas," but instead of serving it on pitas-- we served on greens with some Brianna's Poppyseed Dressing.

Here's to spring and summer and SALADS!!!