Quinoa Chicken and Sweet Potatoes

I consider myself a vegetarian.  I have been one for 9 years or something crazy like that!  I avoid meat and only really eat cheese and eggs.  You will occasionally see me eat a small piece of local hormone free chicken for dinner.  This is a new thing that started after I cut gluten out of my diet.  So you will occasionally find a chicken recipe on here and even meat recipes that I make for people who are not vegetarian and are yummy enough to share :)

I was excited to find this recipe online.  Being gluten free means NO breaded chicken.  and all though this isn't breaded it has a nice crunchiness to it and plenty of flavor.

Quinoa Crusted Chicken

 Ingredients:

• 4 breasts of Organic Chicken
• 3 cups cooked quinoa (which is about 1 cup uncooked)
• 1 small onion chopped
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 egg
• 1tsp sea salt (or more to taste)
• 1tsp pepper (or more to taste)
• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

 Optional:

• 1-2 tsp garlic powder
• 1-2 tsp of any other spices
• I used red pepper flakes, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper, garlic powder

(Recipe Yields 4 servings)

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 375*F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Rinse quinoa first. Add a small amount of olive oil to pot and saute the garlic and onions until transparent.  Add quinoa and toast for a couple minutes.  Add water and bring to a boil.  Then set temperature to medium and cover for about 12 minutes, stirring occasionally so the quinoa does not burn.  When most of the water is absorbed turn off heat and let stand for 5 minutes. Fluff with fork when finished (1 cup dry quinoa yields 3 cups cooked)
3. In a separate dish, combine quinoa with salt and pepper (and the other spices that you choose)
4. Scramble raw egg into another dish.
5. Dip chicken into egg, coat well. Then put chicken into quinoa mixture, coat well. Place chicken onto baking sheet.
6. Lightly brush oil over each piece of chicken to help it brown.
7. Bake for 30-45 minutes depending on thickness of chicken.

I adore sweet potatoes and yams.  One of my favorite ways to eat them is to roast them in the oven.  It is easy and they taste great!

Roasted Sweet Potatoes

Ingredients:

•  Sweet Potatoes
• Olive Oil
• Seasoning

 Directions:

1. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.  Peel and cut your sweet potatoes into chunks.  I usually make them about 1/4-1/2 inch thick.  Coat potatoes with olive oil and place on a cookie sheet.  Place in oven for 10 minutes.
2. After 10 minutes take the potatoes out and flip them.  I also sprinkle some salt, garlic or garlic powder and red pepper at this point.  Place back in over for another 8 minutes.
3. Take potatoes out, if they are the desired softness take them out, otherwise continue to check them every few minutes until thoroughly cooked.  Depending on how thick I cut them they usually take 20-30 minutes to cook all the way.

 Enjoy!

Bry

Spinach Quinoa Bake

Life.  That is my only answer as to why I didn't get this posted yesterday like I promised.   I am loving the evaluation of this blog, from meals I cooked for my family, to food I could eat without getting ill to foods that were low fat, and gluten free, and mostly vegetarian.  The next step to this blog is gluten free, vegetarian, dairy free meals!  However for all my non health freak friends out there I will continue to post an occasional meat filled, fatty, gluten meal!  However I encourage everyone, food allergies or not to try these meals because honestly I every meal I post on here I would eat, healthy life style or not.

 

I thank pinterest and the Internet and other food blogs for my inspiration.  Very few of these meals are actually 100% of my own creation.  Most I mess and play with a bit though.

 

I love green beans however 98% of the time I just steam them and eat them.  However the other night I roasted them, and loved them.  I am a fan of roasted veggies.

 

Roasted Green Beans

 

Ingredients:

• 12 oz green beans, trimmed (make sure they are dry)
• 2 tsp olive oil
• salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste
• 1-2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 425°F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum for easy clean-up.
2. Lay green beans out on the baking sheet and drizzle oil over them. Season with salt, pepper and toss to evenly coat.
3. Spread them out on the sheet so that they all lay flat and place on the lower third section of your oven. Bake 10 minutes, shake the pan to turn and add fresh garlic; bake 5 additional minutes. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with grated cheese.

 

 

Quinoa Spinach Bake

 

Ingredients:

• 1 pounds of spinach leaves
• 2 tsp olive oil, plus a little extra for your pan
• 1 onion, diced
• 2 gloves garlic, minced
• 1 tbsp thyme leaves
• 1 tsp finely chopped rosemary
• 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
• 2 cups of cooked quinoa
• 1 cup cottage cheese (once again I was short on cottage cheese, so 1/2 cup of Greek yogurt and 1/2 cup of Gorgonzola cheese)
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat an 8-by-8-inch glass or ceramic baking dish with olive-oil spray. Coat with breadcrumbs; set aside.
2. Fill a large bowl with ice and water; set aside. Bring a medium pot of water to a boil. Add spinach; blanch until bright green, about 10 seconds. Transfer to ice bath. When spinach is cold, remove from ice bath, squeeze out all water, and finely chop; set aside.
3. Heat the olive oil in a medium saute pan. Add onion, garlic, thyme, rosemary, and red-pepper flakes, and saute until translucent, about 8 minutes. Remove from heat; transfer to a medium bowl.
4. Add spinach, quinoa, cottage cheese, pepper, and eggs to the onion mixture, and stir until well combined. Pour the mixture into the prepared baking dish, and place in the oven. Bake until set and edges are brown, 60 to 70 minutes. Slice, and serve warm or at room temperature.

 

 

 

Along with the quinoa and green beans I made some Roasted Broccoli.  Yummy :)

 

 

Bry

Quinoa Patties

I know it's been a while since my last post.  Been busy improving my life!  Between getting signed up for school, gym visits, doctor trip, I also completely emptied out my room except for my 2 dressers and book shelves!  The goal is to get hard floors so that the dust, that I am highly allergic to, can't be trapped in my carpets!

This recipe was yummy.  I served it with a kale salad which I will post the recipe for in the coming days.  Enjoy!

Quinoa Patties

Ingredients:

• 2 rounded cups cooked quinoa (see note below for cooking instructions)
• 3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese, I used sharp cheddar
• 1/2 cup low-fat cottage cheese (I was out of cottage cheese so I used plain greek yogurt
• 1 medium carrot, finely grated or 1 cup shredded zucchini, squeezed dry
• 3 eggs
• 3 tablespoons all purpose flour
• 2 green onions, including white parts
• 1 /2 teaspoon Splenda or sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 2-3 cloves fresh garlic, minced
• Olive oil for frying

.

Directions:

To cook quinoa:

1 cup uncooked quinoa
2 cups water
In a medium saucepan bring the 2 cups water to a boil over high heat. Add quinoa and reduce heat to low. Cover and cook for 18-20 minutes, or until all water is absorbed and the seeds are tender. Allow to cool for a few minutes.

In a large bowl combine the cooked quinoa, cheddar cheese, cottage cheese, carrot, eggs, flour, green onions, Splenda, pepper, cumin, salt, and garlic powder.

(To help them stay in patty form and not fall apart, I cook them on med-low slowly so they have longer to set-up without burning. Makes them easier to flip, too.) Heat a frying pan and a couple teaspoons olive oil over medium-low heat. Mixture will be slightly sticky, so using a 1/4 cup measuring cup, drop mixture into pan and lightly flatten to 1/2 inch thick. Fry until golden-brown,

about 4 minutes on each side.

Bry

Quinoa Enchiladas

I am not a usually one to invent a recipe, but I have failed to go grocery shopping for the last say week and my poor family has been eating rice and beans and other left overs.  So scraping together what I could find I made this awesome quinoa enchilada!  Use as a taco filling or eat plain or with lettuce.  Anyway this recipe is a keeper in my book.

Ingredients:
 
Enchilada Sauce:

• 1 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes
• 1 6 ounce can tomato paste
• 1 packet of enchilada seasoning
• 1 cup of vegetable stock

Quinoa Mix:

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 small onion
• 1 small zucchini, pepper, corn or any veggie you want 
• 2 minced cloves or garlic
• 1.5 cups uncooked quinoa
• 3 cups water or vegetable stock
• 2 cups of cooked black beans, rinsed

Sour Cream Mix:
(I made half vegetarian, half chicken)

• 1 cup of sour cream
• 3.5 cups of cheese
•  Lime juice, about 1 lime
• 1-2 cups of shredded chicken (optional)
• 1 small can of sliced olives (optional)
• 1 small can of green chillies (optional)

Directions:

1. Heat up olive oil in a medium sauce pan over medium high.  Add onion and zucchini and saute for a few minutes until slightly browned.  Add garlic and cook for about a minute more.  Add quinoa and cook for a few minutes on medium until toasted.  Add 3 cups of water and the black beans to the quinoa.   Bring to a boil, cover and reduce heat to low.  Let cook for about 15 minutes until most of the moister is soaked in, stir and turn off heat, cover til all the water is gone.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
3. While the quinoa is cooking in another small sauce pan mix the diced tomatoes, tomato paste until it starts to bubble.  Add enchilada seasoning and 1 cup of vegetable broth and bring back to a simmer and allow to thicken.
4. When the quinoa and sauce are done cooking mix quinoa, 2.5 cups of enchilada sauce together.  Add cheese, sour cream, lime juice (chicken, olives, chillies if using).  Mix all together and transfer to a large greased baking pan.  Top enchiladas with left over sauce and sprinkle with cheese.  Bake in the over for about 20 minutes until cheese is melted and center is hot.

Bry

Quinoa Bean Tacos

I borrowed this recipe idea from one of my new favorite gluten free blogs: Giving Up Gluten.  The fun thing about cooking though is you can add and change things as you see fit :)  The recipe I made made enough to last us for the rest of the week, which in a house of Go, Go, Go people that is a good thing, but this recipe could easily be cut in half and be plenty for a family meal.

• 1 15oz. can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 15oz. can pinto beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 can diced tomatoes (I used a couple of fresh tomatoes chopped up finely)
• 1 can corn, drained (I left out the corn, we don't try to eat a lot of corn in my family)
• 1 yellow onion, diced
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 1 green bell pepper, diced
• 2 tsp. olive oil
  
• 2 cups quinoa
• 2 tsp. minced garlic
• 1 lime, juice and zest
• 1 tsp. salt
• 4 1/2 cup vegetable or chicken broth
• 3-4 heaping tablespoons taco seasoning
• Hard or corn taco shells
• Shredded cheese
• Any of your other favorite taco toppings 
• ** I also added 1 small zucchini shredded and about a cup of shredded broccoli

In a large skillet, cook onions and bell peppers in olive oil over medium heat until soft.
Add minced garlic and cook 1 min. longer.
Add beans, corn, diced tomatoes, zucchini, broccoli, salt, and taco seasoning. Mix well.
Then add quinoa, broth, and lime juice/zest. Mix until all ingredients are incorporated together. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for until most of the water is absorbed and quinoa is cooked, about 20-25 minutes. Stir occasionally to avoid burning.

Bry

Pesto Quinoa Salad

Ingredients:

8 ounces quinoa, cooked
1 small red onion, diced
1 red pepper, diced
1 orange or green pepper, diced
1 cucumber, seeded, peeled and diced
1 Cup feta cheese, crumbled (I sprinkled the cheese on top of each dish, less cheese, same taste, less calories)
1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 large beet, roasted and diced (opt.)
1/3 Cup parsley, chopped

Basic Pesto: ( I used store bought this time)
Makes about 1 1/2 cups pesto
2 Cups basil
2 cloves garlic
1/3 Cup pine nuts
1/2 Cup olive oil
1/3 Cup Parmesan Cheese
Salt and pepper

Directions:
1. Put a small pot of water on to boil and start cooking the quinoa.  I didn't use a recipe, just added water when needed, but you can always look up a quinoa, water ratio.   While the quinoa is cooking, about 15-20 minutes, cut the veggies into small pieces, and place in a large bowl.

2.  After all the water is absorbed and quinoa is cooked add to the bowl of diced vegetables and beans (leave the beet out til last); stir.  T,hen stir in as much pesto as you would like to flavor the dish,  about a cup or so.  If you are adding a beet stir in last.

3.  Serve into dishes and top with feta.  ENJOY!

Bry
 

  

Quinoa Mac & Cheese

Quinoa Mac & Cheese

 Ingredients

•2 tsp olive oil

•1 med. leek white and pale green parts halved and sliced (1 cup)

•1/2 cup diced tomato, or red/green pepper

•1 1/2 cups quinoa, rinsed and drained

•good pinch of salt

•a few grinds of seasoning salt

•2 cloves garlic, minced

•2 large eggs

•1 cup soy milk or non-fat milk

•1 1/2 cups grated Cheddar cheese, more for sprinkling

•Optional- Crushed Red Pepper, Panko Bread crumbs for topping

•Toppings (optional)- salsa, hot sauce, sour cream, scallions (you get the picture)

Directions

1.Heat oil in med. saucepan over med. heat. Add leek and tomatoes (or bell peppers-or any veggies you want really); cover and cook 5 mins or until tender. Stir in quinoa and garlic, and cook, uncovered, 3-4 mins, or until grains start to turn opaque. (They will not fully be cooked yet.)

2.Add 3 cups water and season with salt and the Seasoning Salt (I like Lawry's or Everyday Seasoning). Cover and reduce heat to med-low and simmer 5-10 more, or until most liquid has been absorbed. Remove from heat and let stand 5 mins.

3.Preheat oven to 350 F. Coat 13x9 inch dish with cooking spray. Whisk together eggs and milk in large bowl. Fold in quinoa mixture and cheese. Stir very well and let some of the cheese melt. Transfer to prepared baking dish and if using Panko Crumbs or Bread crumbs add now and bake 30-35 mins, (or until browned around edges.)

4.Now you can toss with many toppings, some ideas: salsa, scallions, sour cream, and hot sauce! I serve with a side of steamed brocolli or a salad and a nice slice of good hearty bread.

I served this with bacon and roasted brocoli.  Brocoli recipe found here.  Enjoy!

Bry