Monday, September 12, 2011

Quinoa Tabbouleh Salad (*GF *Vegan)

As I've mentioned previously, I love cooking with quinoa.  This was a delicious recipe that I recently tried.  It is served cool or at room temperature and is perfect for summer eating!

Ingredients:
1 cup quinoa
2 cups water (or vegetable broth - I prefer water)
Couple handfuls of grape tomatoes, quartered
1 cucumber, chopped
4 scallions, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 T chopped fresh mint
1/2 c. chopped fresh parsley
1/4 c. olive oil
1/4 c. lemon juice (fresh is best)
1/2 tsp salt, or to taste

Directions:
In a medium pot cover quinoa in water (or broth) and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to a slow simmer, cover and allow to cook for 15 minutes, or until quinoa is cooked and most of the liquid is absorbed.

In a large bowl combine tomatoes, cucumbers, scallions, garlic, fresh mint and fresh parsley.  Add cooked quinoa, olive oil, salt and lemon juice.  Toss gently.  Season with salt.

Chill for at least one hour before serving, or up to 8 hours to allow flavors to combine.

Enjoy!

Marinated Mushrooms (*Raw *GF *Vegan)


If you are a mushroom fan, then this easy recipe is for you!  Yes, it's raw so the mushrooms are not served warm.  But, they are so tasty you won't even notice! :)

Ingredients:
2-4 portabella mushrooms, destemmed - washed and cut into bite sized pieces
1/4 cup nama shoyu
1 T. apple cider vinegar
1 T. dried basil

Mix and marinate for 8-12 hours.  Eat and enjoy!!!

Quinoa Salad with Roasted Beets, Chickpeas & Orange

*from Gluten Free Goddess

Since deciding to eat gluten free, I have become a big fan of quinoa.  I have made it in a variety of ways and recipes and love it every time.  I also love beets.  Honestly.  A recipe that had two of my food loves?  Had to try it - and loved it!!

You'll Need:
3 cups cooked quinoa

Roasted Beets:
2 beets, trimmed & quartered
olive oil 
sea salt

In a medium roasting pan, combine the cut beets with a drizzle of olive oil and sea salt.  Place the pan in an oven pre-heated to 375 and roast until tender (about 45 min).  Remove the beets from the pan and set aside to cool.  When cool enough to handle, rub off the skin.  If the skin doesn't easily rub off, cut it off with a knife.  Cut the beets into bite-sized pieces.

Salad Dressing:
While your beets are roasting, go ahead and make your salad dressing.
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup fresh squeezed orange juice
2 tsp tamari soy sauce 
1 tsp balsalmic vinegar or rice vinegar
1 T agave nectar or honey

Combine and whisk.  Set aside.

Salad:
Combine the warm cooked quinoa in a mixing bowl with:
1 cup drained and rinsed chickpeas
2 handfuls of baby spinach
sea salt and ground pepper, to taste

Pour in the salad dressing and toss lightly.  Season with sea salt and pepper to taste.

Gently add in:
Cut up roasted beets
1 fresh orange, peeled, trimmed and cut into bite sized pieces.

Enjoy!!



Brownie (*Raw *GF *Vegan)


Wow!  I didn't realize it had been quite so long since I had posted recipes!  Well, there's life for you!  
My sister had been asking for new recipes and I decided I might as well get back to the blog.  Of course, for my first recipe I made it dessert!  Unfortunately most desserts are made with ingredients I choose not to eat, so I found one that was a perfect combination of health and yum!

Ingredients:
Brownie
1 c. walnuts (I used peanuts and it was fine)
1 c. dates (pitted)
1/4 c. cacao or cocoa powder (unsweetened)

Icing
2 avocados
1/2 c. agave nectar
1/4 c. cacao or cocoa powder
2 T coconut oil
1 T vanilla extract
dash salt
dash cinnamom

Directions:
1.  Food process all brownie ingredients until blended and chunky.  Press into a small pan.
2.  Put all icing ingredients into blender and blend until smooth.
3.  Spread icing over brownies
4.  Put in freezer to set for 1 hour.  
5.  Eat!
6.  If there are any left, I cut mine into individual pieces and put them in back in the freezer in ziplocks for future enjoyment :)