I'm not a big salad eater. Lettuce? Blech. Frisee? Looks like something I pulled out of my yard. It's one of those "what's the point?" foods for me. Like chicken wings. Not worth the trouble to get it on the fork. But I do like most vegetables and I love whole grains. So in an effort to get more veggies into my diet I have been trying out grain salads.
I've fallen in love with this recipe for Quinoa with Zucchini and Corn. It's very yummy. I didn't change a thing.
It's fresh and flavorful and easy to make. It's good warm or cold and makes a nice lunch, light dinner or just a side dish. I'd take this to a potluck, too. This was my first time cooking with Quinoa. It's got a nice, almost nutty flavor and is packed with protein and vitamins. Just about the healthiest grain you can eat.
And now that I know a good way to cook this stuff it's going to be a great way to clean out the fridge. This recipe is really worth trying as is even if you have to make a special trip to get the ingredients but you can substitute almost any veggies and fresh herbs you have into this recipe quite easily.
I generally have things like carrots, parsley, apples, broccoil, spinach, etc, around. I'm betting you do, too. Sometimes they lose a bit of their...vigor before I get around to using them. And I often have a night where there's plenty of food in the house but nothing (so I think) to create a whole meal out of.
Quinoa is my new solution to this problem--I need to remember that brown rice works great this way, too.
Got 2 carrots that won't make it another day, 1 apple and a little bit of parsley? Go for it. Find a 1/4 bag of walnuts in the pantry? Toss 'em in.
Have a half a pint of cherry tomatoes that look...alright...and little red onion and a handful of basil? Do it! Uh ho, that avocado is about to go bad, too? Stick it in there.
Just buy the grains in bulk and keep on hand and when those nights roll around, make up a pot of quinoa, clean out the crisper for the saute, then toss in whatever herbs, fruit, nuts or cheese you like at the end. We're not vegetarians so I did use chicken stock in the recipe instead of water but you can certainly substitute veggie stock for some added flavor.
Here are a few other Quinoa recipes I plan to try in the coming weeks:
Coconut Curry Lentil Stew over Quinoa
Quinoa Pilaf and Quinoa Super Salad
This is gooooood stuff and just the right kind of energy booster for mid-day. Try it.
