Red Pepper Fried Quinoa With Parmesan Green Beans

I am in love with Quinoa, if ya can't tell :) Here's my lunch! So YUMMY! BTW-Quinoa is a complete protein.

Red Pepper Fried Quinoa With Parmesan Green Beans

3-4 small red peppers or 1 One large, diced
1/4 cup chopped onion
1-2 teaspoons olive oil
2 large eggs, beaten
1/2 cup cooked Quinoa
1-2 teaspoons soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
salt and pepper

Saute peppers and onion for about one minute in olive oil or cooking spray, add Quinoa, garlic powder, salt and pepper and cook for additional minute or two on medium-high heat. Whisk the eggs with a fork into the hot peppers/onion/Quinoa mixture. Continue to whisk with a fork until eggs are incorporated and cooked through. Add soy sauce, and mix in. Set aside.

Parmesan Green Beans

1-2 teaspoons olive oil
1 cup fresh or frozen green beans
salt
pepper
1 garlic clove minced or 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
parmesan cheese

Heat oil in iron skillet on medium heat. Add green beans, garlic and a splash of water, cover and cook for 1 minute. Add salt and pepper to taste. Cook an additional minute or two or until all water is cooked out. Keep covered to steam. Remove cover, and add parmesan cheese. Cook uncovered for another additional minute or two, until cheese is browned. Pour on top of Quinoa. Enjoy!!!

Jen's Refried Beans and Enchilada Filler

So, in an effort to eat more beans around our house and less meat for every meal, I put together these super yummy beans!

Refried Beans

2 cups pinto beans
1 cup kidney beans (can use more pinto beans)
1 cup Quinoa (optional)
1/2 c up to 1 c. Water ( depends on how thick you want your beans
1 onion
3 garlic cloves
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin
1 tablespoon taco seasoning
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
1 teaspoon onion powder
1-2 teaspoons Mrs. Dash Fiesta Lime No salt seasoning (optional)
1 tablespoon grapeseed oil (or another oil you can cook at high heat, I get my grapeseed oil at smiths)

Heat oil and cook onion and garlic until slightly brown, add a little water and all spices and cook for a few minutes. In a food processor, combine onion/garlic/spice mixture, as well as beans, quinoa and 1/2 cup water. Mix in processor until creamy, add water, if needed to desired consistency.

This recipe makes the BEST enchilada filler or burrito filler!

Mac & Cheese

This is so yummy! I can't really claim it as my own though. I did make a few variations from the original. My inspiration came from Chef Brad and this meal he made during one of his classes during Education Week at BYU.

Mac & Cheese

2-4 tablespoons butter

1 small onion, finely chopped

1 garlic clove minced

1/3 cup spelt flour

1 cup vegetable or chicken stock

1 1/2 cups milk

1/2 to 1 cup cooked Quinoa (optional)

2 lbs Pinwheel Pasta

2-3 cups Mexican Cheese Shredded

salt

pepper

Cook pasta as directed on the package. Saute Onion and Garlic in a large skillet or Wok. Whisk in spelt flour, creating a paste. Add more butter if it is too dry. Let it simmer for a minute or so. Whisk in vegetable or chicken stock until well blended, as it thickens add milk, salt and pepper to taste. Add more milk if you'd like the sauce thinner. Add quinoa and pasta. sprinkle cheese on top and cover. Let simmer on low for 5 minutes or until cheese has melted. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and serve.

*The original called for half n half instead of milk and vegetable broth and a little more quinoa. I liked using regular milk because I just didn't have the creamier stuff in my fridge and I like the flavor of the broth.

Chicken Pot Pie....um Vegetarian Style?!

1 box Rachel Ray Chicken Stock (approx 2-3 cups)

4 carrots diced

3 potatoes cubed

1-2 teaspoon salt

pepper

onion powder

garlic powder

Put in a pot and bring to boil, then turn to medium heat and cook until soft.

3-4 tablespoons butter

1 onion, finely diced

1/3 cup spelt, barley, brown rice flour or just whole wheat or spelt flour

1 cup milk

1 tablespoon dried parsley (add last after all ingredients are combined)

1/2 to 1 cup cooked Quinoa

Melt butter in a large saucepan or wok, add onions and cook 1-2 minutes, then whisk in flour to create a thick paste...add more butter if it is too dry or more flour if it is too wet. Then add 1 cup of milk (rice, soy or any milk will do) and whisk until all ingredients are blended. Once it becomes thick, add the carrot, potato and broth mixture to the thick sauce and mix until thick. Lastly add, the cooked Quinoa.

Biscuit's

1 cup whole wheat flour (or spelt)

1 cup white flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons coconut oil (unrefined, expeller pressed)

1 egg, beaten

1 cup milk

1 tablespoon Rumford baking powder (add last)

Mix dry ingredients. Add oil, egg and milk. Stir until well combined. Add baking powder, and stir only until baking powder is mixed (do not over stir).

Pour sauce into a 9x13 inch pan, drop the biscuits by spoon on top of the sauce mixture. Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes or until the biscuits begin to turn brown on top.

I served this to my family the other night and as we were eating realized that I did not add chicken! In all my excitement I didn't add it to my veggies....so we had a great vegetarian meal and everyone loved it! We were taking the challenge of living off of our food storage so we were out of lettuce and so we used our sprouts with a super yummy dressing I invented and tomatoes. My kids loved it and to me that spells success! My kids love this dressing on everything now.

Here is the dressing for those interested:

Balsamic Dream

1/2 cup expeller pressed extra virgin olive oil

1/2 cup expeller pressed Walnut Oil (I buy mine at Smiths)

2 tablespoons Lemon Zest Omega 3 Flax Oil (Barleans is the brand, found at Dave's Nutrition)

1/2 cup balsamic vinegar

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1-2 garlic cloves finely minced

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon onion powder

1-2 teaspoons minced dried onion

I put this dressing in a shaker. The flax oil binds the ingredients together and does not immediately separate like other vinaigrette's. It will separate over time but not as quickly as other dressings. If you choose to not use the lemon Flax oil, the regular flax oil will work, the flavor might not be something you like, but you can experiment with it. Store in your refrigerator. This should keep for at least a month or more.

Quinoa

I would like to try and "spotlight" one grain a week...give or take depending on how many yummy recipes I can include for each. This week I'd like to introduce you to Quinoa. I had never heard of this grain until about 5 years ago. I'd never really learned what I could do with Quinoa until this last year. Quinoa is such a pretty grain and when cooked is light and fluffy. I just learned during Education Week from Chef Brad that Quinoa also comes in red and black! This is such a powerful grain! It is loaded with all kinds of nutrition. Here is a list of some of those poweful nutrients:

• Complete Protein: This grain provides all of the 9 essential amino acids (I personally thought the only place to find all essential amino acids were in meat, shows how much I know!)
• Magnesium: Helps regulate and maintain healthy blood pressure
  
• Fiber: Keeps the colon functioning properly.
  
• Manganese & Copper: Great minerals that protect agains cancer and disease.
  
• Calcium: To build strong bones and teeth.

Quinoa (pronouced Keenwah) helps regulate blood sugar, is gluten free and can be used in almost anything you cook! Because of the high content of protein it is very beneficial when eaten regularly during pregnancy and can increase your milk supply when nursing. I often make several cups of this and keep in in my refrigerator for up to a week or you can store it in your freezer.

Here are a few ideas for your cooking:

• Breakfast cereal: You can have this alone for breakfast with honey or Agave or you can add it to your oatmeal or any other hot grain cereal you choose for breakfast.
• Shakes: I often add this to my fruit or protein shakes and you can't even tell it's there.
• Salads: This wonderful grain can be added to any salad! I love it in pasta salads and especially in fruit salads or sprinkled over your green salads. It has such a wonderful texture and mild nutty flavor.
• Stir Fry's: Try adding this to your rice or in place of it. It is yummy!
• Soups: I love adding this to any soup or stew I make.
• Meat: I love adding this to my ground turkey or beef to make it go further and more nutritious. It is great in taco's, especially the red Quinoa. I added it to my Spaghetti the other night and the kids loved it!
• Bread: I add the flour or the cooked grain to my homemade bread each week.

To cook Quinoa: Bring 2 cups of water to a boil, add 1 cup Quinoa and turn to low. Cook on low for 20 minutes. Pressure cook for 7 minutes.

For more information on other informational websites click here and here