Wednesday, August 22, 2012

Summer Quinoa

This recipe was found on Pinterest but I've adjusted the measurements to my own proportions to suit my taste.


Southwest Quinoa Salad



Ingredients:

1/2-3/4 cup uncooked quinoa
1 can organic black beans, drained and rinsed
3/4 cup fresh or frozen thawed corn
3/4  red bell pepper, chopped
1 cup chopped fresh mango
less than 1/4 cup finely chopped red onion
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 (use less if you don't like the spice) small jalapeño pepper, seeded and finely diced
juice from 1 lime
1 1/2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/4 tsp ground turmeric


Steps:


Cook quinoa according to package directions and let cool. If using frozen corn in this recipe, you can throw the kernels in to thaw out. You may have to drain some liquid from this mixture.


Then, mix together the beans, quinoa, corn, bell pepper, mango, onion, cilantro, and jalapeño in a mixing bowl.


Whisk together the lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, cumin, chili powder, and turmeric in a small bowl.

Drizzle over the mixture and toss. Refrigerate until use.

Thursday, August 16, 2012

Black Sesame Tofu

Technically, I didn't totally make this recipe up. I found a similar recipe on Women's Health  but there was something weird about it. The picture showed different ingredients than what was actually in it, etc. So I decided to use it as a basis and add my own things. It turned out much yummier than I expected.

Black Sesame Tofu Stir-Fry


Ingredients:

1.5- 2 cups brown rice, cooked
14 oz. package of extra firm tofu, drained
1.5 Tbsp black sesame seeds
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
2 Tbsp canola or peanut oil, divided
one large stalk of broccoli florets, cut up
1 cup carrots sliced or shreded
1 red bell pepper, sliced
4 green onions, cut into 1 in. pieces
3 Tbsp fresh orange juice
2 Tbsp mellow white miso (found in the refrigerated vegetarian section at Whole Foods)
1 Tbsp soy sauce
1/2 tsp cornstarch


Steps:


1.
Start rice first and let cook while you prepare the rest. Meanwhile, blot tofu dry with paper towels; cut  into 8 slices. Place sesame seeds in a shallow bowl and dredge tofu through seeds.
2.
Heat sesame oil and 1 tablespoon peanut oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add tofu and cook for 5 minutes or until nicely browned. Flip over and continue cooking for 5 minutes or until nicely browned on other side. Remove tofu and keep warm.
3.
Add remaining peanut oil to skillet and heat. Stir in broccoli and carrots; stir-fry for 4 minutes or until crunchy-tender. Stir in bell pepper and green onions; cook for 2 minutes. Reduce heat to low and return tofu to pan.
4.
Combine orange juice, miso, soy sauce, and cornstarch in a small bowl; whisk until well blended. Pour juice mixture into skillet and cook for 1 minute stirring to blend. Serve over rice.


Monday, August 13, 2012

AVOCADOS!

I LOVE avocados. Growing up they just seemed yucky. But my 10 year old self just didn't know what she was missing. I can eat them cut up or if you put a bowl of guacamole in front of me, it WILL disappear quickly. So when I found these two recipes both using avocado and liked them, I knew they needed to be blogged so I wouldn't forget to use them again. FYI, I didn't make these on the same night nor the same week but they are both so easy and tasty. They aren't my recipes since both of them were found on Pinterest but I did make some ingredient tweaks here and there.

Avocado, Cream Cheese, and Salsa Pockets



Ingredients:

cooking spray
1 large puffed pastry sheet, thawed
1 avocado, mashed
1/3 cup cream cheese
1/3 cup salsa
salt and pepper
1 egg, beaten

(you probably won't use the full amount of all the ingredients with the exception of the pastry sheet)

Steps:

1. Preheat oven to 400. Spray baking sheet with cooking spray. 
2. Once thawed, cut pastry sheet into 9, 2 by 2 in squares.
3. On half the squares, place a dollop of avocado, then cream cheese, then salsa. 
4. Season with salt and pepper.
5. Place remaining squares over filling. Use a fork to seal down edges so nothing seeps out.
6. Brush eggwash over top of each pocket square.
7. Bake for 15 minutes or until lightly browned. 



Heirloom Tomato Caprese w/ Avocado

Ingredients:
2 Heirloom tomatoes, cubed
2 avocados, cubed
2 balls of fresh mozzarella, cubed/sliced
2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
handful of fresh basil, coarsely chopped
salt and pepper

Steps:

1. Place tomatoes, avocados, and cheese in a large bowl.
2. Pour oil over and add basil.
3. Toss and season.