Quinoa and Grilled Veggies; It may be fall but my BBQ is still getting well used!

Lets talk about trying something new. Well, maybe this isn't something new but lets chat anyway.

Quinoa (pronounced keen-wa) is a grain-like (not grain) crop that is delicious. So good. Its nutty and almost pops in your mouth. Its a great food to add to your diet because it contains things like iron, calcium and protein.   It is super easy to make (rice cooker anyone?), can be used in place of pasta. rice. or couscous, and I think it looks pretty. 

Now, I don't want you to be confused with couscous (speaking of). I like couscous but it is a completely different crop. Couscous derives from wheat and doesn't require the same cooking as quinoa. It is still considered a delicious and very healthy grain. It is full of good stuff that again we all need to eat. But...I just can't make myself eat it very often. 

Its not that I don't like, its just that when Aaron and I went to France for a summer so he could take some courses and I could have a 6 week French coast beach vacation (that trip was amazing) the university served a cheap meal everyday for lunch in the cafeteria. Because I had taken 6 weeks off work and Aaron was a student being cheap was our life so I met him everyday for lunch at the school. Every day they served couscous and I could never stomach it. Turns out I was a few weeks pregnant with Hazel and maybe I should have been eating the couscous rather than the fresh shellfish and soft cheeses I lived on that summer but there was something about the couscous that my baby making belly couldn't handle. And inst it funny that now 5+ years later I still associate couscous to that sick feeling I had when I walked into that little french cafeteria. 

The Kid who ruined couscous for me. Sweet trampoline hair hey?

So, though couscous is healthy and good and you should eat it I'm not going it. 

But I will eat quinoa forever more. 

Quinoa and Grilled Veggies

1 cup of Quinoa (Costco has one of the best prices for this not cheap grain, better usually than bulk barn even)

2 cups of water or broth (I like to cook mine in broth because it adds some flavour)

Now, since this is my blog I get to tell you how I make it but if you don't have a rice cooker you make this on the stove top the same way as you would rice, or just follow the directions on the packaging. 

So, I put my quinoa and my broth (or water) into my rice cooker (don't have one? you should get one) and turn it on. When it turns itself off telling me that its ready I stir or fluff it up and its ready to go. 

Easy.

Now for the grilled veggies. I made these the same way as when I posted the recipe for Smoky Peppers on the BBQ but I added some zucchini.

3 Peppers cut in half with stems and seeds removed. (Get colorful! I used Red, Yellow and Orange Peppers)

2 Zucchini cut in half.

Brush the veggies with Olive Oil and sprinkle with salt (Salt is a must to help the peppers get juicy!)

Place on a hot BBQ for approx 8 minutes on each side or until tender. 

Once the veggies are cooked (and you can really use any veggies you want) cut into bite sized pieces and mix into your quinoa. I like to add a few shakes of Mrs. Dash and voila, you are ready to eat. 

This dish can be served as a side or even part of a main course. 

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oh, and we ate all of it before I could take any pictures so how about one of my cute family?

Family wrestling on the tramp

Getting Ready for Fall: Crock pot Chilli and Baked Pita Chips

I'm in mourning. I've come to a sad realization over the past couple of days and it makes me so sad. And yes, I'm perhaps being a little melodramatic, but, still...

The thing I've realized is that my cooking habits have got to change. I love our new city but I spend my entire day driving. Well, maybe not the entire day but a lot of it. And the reason that I have to change my cooking habits is because I have to get Hazel off the bus then I have 40 minutes to make dinner and get to the college to pick Aaron up. We then come home and everyone is starving (and if you have seen someone related to Aaron hungry you will know it is scary) and we need to eat pronto.

This means I won't be able to try 3-4 new recipes a week. This means I cant spend a late afternoon in my fabulous new kitchen chopping veggies or sautéing tofu. This means I have to start making crock pot meals, having freezer meals ready, and have lots of quick solutions pretty much everyday.

Now, I want you to know that I love freezer meals but I also love the chopping, and cooking, and seeing it all come together, not just throwing it in a casserole dish and walking away for a few hours.

So, here is the first of the hopefully lots of quick and easy meals to help me get through this year (if we last that long living with only 1 car). This meal was something I threw together with things I had, including the chips.

This meal was delicious, hearty and everyone bowls were empty at the end of dinner.

Vegetarian Crockpot Chilli and Baked Pita Chips

1/2 a chopped Onion

2 tsp of minced Garlic

1 can of Diced Tomatoes (but, I didn't have any so I just chopped 3 fresh tomatoes and threw them in)

2 chopped Zucchinis (I love squash season)

1 can of Chick Peas

1 can of Black Beans

4 tbsp of Tomato Paste (but I didn't have any so I just threw in a can of tomato soup)

1/2 a cup of Salsa

1/2 tsp of Salt

1 tsp of Curry Powder

2 tsp of Basil

2 tsp of Thyme

So...since this is a crock pot meal you really just throw everything in the crock pot, turn it on. High for 3-4 hours or Low for 6-8. Serve hot with buns, or tortilla chips or a favorite around here, Baked Pita Chips.

Baked Pita Chips

This is a super easy and fast 'recipe'. We eat a lot of wraps but sometimes we don't eat them fast enough and they get a little dry and then they don't wrap properly. When I get like this I turn them into chips to eat with hummus, or salsa or chilli.

Cut your wraps into triangles. Arrange on a baking sheet (I always put parchment paper down first) and bake at 350 for about 8 minutes. Turn them over and bake for an additional 6 minutes or until they are golden brown. Serve.

I have never seasoned these but I'm sure you could brush them with Olive Oil and sprinkle sea salt on them for a little splash of flavour.

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Polenta Pizza (Sing It!)

I have this fabulous vegan friend who can cook. And I mean cook. She is always throwing things together and they seem to always (well, when I've been there) to be delicious. She actually inspired me to start Veggies for Me and Veggies for You. She also makes me want to be able to do that too; just makes something delicious out of nothing.

So, I did something last night that I have never done before. I invented a recipe.  If that is what you call it.

Have you ever had Polenta? Let me tell you a little bit about it. According to Wikipedia:

 "Polenta is a dish made from boiled cornmeal. The word "polenta" is borrowed from Italian."

I know. Sounds Revolting. But actually it is SO fun and good. Sort of like Cornbread, and who doesn't like cornbread?  My sister sent me a recipe for Polenta this past fall. She wrote a little note on it that read: "Have you ever tried Polenta? I love the texture...It is just so yummy"

I've been wanting to try it ever since. The Recipe for Polenta is easy, and then I took some ideas from another recipe for the topping and turned it into "Polenta Pizza" (Aaron named this dish for me).

Aaron LOVED it. He told me it was "awesome", "perfect", "great". But was it a success? Aaron and I enjoyed it but the kids wouldn't touch it and instead of eating it (and they are not usually picky eaters) they each had 2-3 servings of salad. Maybe this is one I save for the adults. These little pizza's would be great finger food for a dinner party, or maybe even while watching the big game. 

Polenta Pizza

6 cups of Water

2 cups of Yellow Cornmeal

a pinch of salt

1/4 cup of butter

1/2 cup of grated Parmesan Cheese

Bring the water to a boil in a large pot. Pour the cornmeal in slowly, stirring constantly. Add Salt and Butter. Cook on low heat from 20-30 minutes, stirring often. The Polenta should be thick but smooth and soft. 

 Poured it into a Parchment Paper lined cookie sheet and set it outside to cool.

1 tsp of Garlic

1/2 a Zucchini,thinly sliced

1 cup of Sliced Mushrooms

1 can of Diced Tomatoes

1 Tbsp of Olive Oil

1/2 cup of Mozzarella Cheese

Saute the Garlic, Zucchini, and Mushrooms until soft (you can add any other veggies you want here). Add the diced Tomatoes. If you want to add some spices, do it now!

By now the Polenta should be cooled. Bring it in a slice it into pieces. (When it is cooled it "forms" the shape of the dish it was cooled in. You can pick it up with your fingers now) In a separate frying pan brown each side of the Polenta. Remove from pan and place back onto your cookie sheet. Top with your veggies and a little Mozzarella Cheese. Throw into the Oven and Broil until the cheese is melted. Serve and Enjoy!

I know it sounded like a lot of steps, but this is actually a very simple meal, just give yourself time to let the Polenta cook and cool. Happy Polenta Eating!

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