Three Yummy Quinoa Recipes

Quinoa is a high-fiber grain that's loaded with protein, cooks fast and it is incredibly delicious and versatile. I use it to make my daughter's favorite creamy hot breakfast cereal with cinnamon, brown sugar and skim milk, I make it with organic chicken/vegetable broth for a fantastic rice or pasta substitute and with a few tablespoons atop salads and also folded into roasted veggies it is DELISH!

Fresh Herb, Tomato and Quinoa Salad

Ingredients :
3/4 cup water
1/2 cup quinoa
3 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
3 scallions (white and light green parts, thinly sliced)
1 small cucumber, peeled and diced
3 Tbsp lightly packed fresh parsley, finely chopped
2 Tbsp finely chopped fresh mint
3 large bite sized cut tomatoes, or red grape tomatoes, halved
1/2 cup garbanzo beans, rinsed
2 ounces crumbled low fat feta cheese
salt and pepper {to taste}


In a small saucepan, bring water to a boil over high heat. Add quinoa and a pinch of salt; bring back to a boil. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer until cooked, until nearly all the water is absorbed and quinoa is tender and chewy but not soft. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, combine juice, oil, salt, and pepper. Fold in quinoa, scallions, garbanzo beans, cucumber, and herbs. Fold in tomatoes. Toss until thoroughly coated. Season to taste as desired. Crumble feta on top. Serve immediately and enjoy! Yum!

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African Quinoa Peanut Soup ~ serves 6

3/4 cup quinoa, rinsed, 3 tablespoons olive oil,

1 medium onion, chopped small,

1 red bell pepper, diced small,

2 celery stalks (diced small)

3 cups (1" diced pieces) sweet potatoes,

1 large jalapeno (deseeded, deveined and diced small)

2 small zucchini (diced small), 4 cloves garlic (minced)

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

1 & 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin,

1 & 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano

1/2 teaspoon black pepper, 1 & 1/2 teaspoons salt

8 cups water, 1 cup chunky organic peanut butter

In a small bowl, rinse quinoa until water runs clear. Do not skip this step. Prepare and measure out all remaining ingredients in advance. In a large heavy-bottomed pot on medium-high heat, add oil and onion, red bell pepper, celery, sweet potatoes, jalapeno and red pepper flakes. Sauté for 15 minutes or until sweet potatoes are slightly soft. Next add zucchini, minced garlic, cumin, oregano, pepper and salt; sauté 2 to 3 minutes, careful not to burn garlic. Add 8 cups water, deglaze pot with a wooden spoon. Add quinoa (rinsed and drained). Bring to a boil, cover and reduce heat, simmer 15 minutes or until quinoa is cooked.

Remove about 1 1/2 cups of hot liquid from the soup, pour into a small bowl. Add peanut butter to small bowl, use a wooden spoon or a whisk to blend and make a thin paste. (This step prevents clumping.) Pour peanut paste into the soup, and mix well. Simmer 5 – 10 minutes. Taste and adjust seasonings. Serve hot, topped with a few rough chopped peanuts.
Yep... it is AMAZING!

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Ground Beef and Quinoa Stuffed Zucchini
(enough to stuff four large zucchini or four large green peppers, whichever you love best!)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Cut the zucchini into 3 inch sections. Carefully remove the seeds and hollow out the center of each section, making sure not to hollow completely through the section. Brush lightly with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.

Place zucchini in preheated oven and bake for 25 minutes. Remove from oven. Drain any liquid that has accumulated in the bottom of the zucchini or peppers. Set aside. Reduce oven heat to 350 degrees.

Beef Stuffing :
3/4 cup quinoa (make with beef broth in place of water)
1 pound lean ground beef
kosher salt and pepper
2 TBSP olive oil
1/2 large onion, diced
1/2 bell pepper (any color) seeded and diced
pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
6 ounces mushrooms, coarsely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 TBSP fresh oregano, chopped
1 TBSP fresh basil leaves, chopped
2 tsp fresh thyme leaves, chopped
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped, reserve a little for garnish
3 TBSP tomato paste
1 TBSP Worchestershire sauce
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for garnish

While the zucchini are baking, prepare quinoa according to package instructions, using beef broth instead of water. Set aside. In large skillet over medium-high heat, crumble ground beef and season with salt and pepper. Cook until beef is browned. Drain and remove from pan to a small bowl.

In same skillet heat olive oil. Add the onions and bell pepper and season with salt, pepper and crushed red pepper flakes. Saute until onions are translucent, 5-7 minutes. Add the mushrooms and saute for another 3-5 minutes, or until mushrooms have given up most of their liquid. Add the garlic, oregano, basil, thyme and parsley and saute for another minute or two. Stir in the tomato paste and Worchestershire sauce. Add the cooked quinoa and ground beef. Sprinkle Parmesan cheese over all and stir well to combine. Remove from heat. Stuff zucchini with mixture.

Bake the zucchini for an additional 25-30 minutes, depending on the size and thickness. I like my zucchini tender/crisp so I baked them for about 25 minutes. Remove from oven and garnish with Parmesan cheese and chopped parsley. YUMMY!!!
{recipes courtesy of fellow quinoa lovers/addicts off of cyberspace...}






{On "free days" 7 & 14 for lunch, any of these paired with a big salad are fantastic!!}