Our Veggie Kitchen

I felt adventurous last I made tacos, so I made a bunch of fillings so we could try a little of everything. I had black beans in the fridge, so I made some homemade refried beans. I read on "Yeah That Vegan Shit" about Spiced Lentils and I had to give that a try. And, I've been wanting to try some cheese flavored quinoa, so I gave that a go instead of Spanish rice.

The lentils were good. I added a jalapeno and a couple of tablespoons of taco seasonings with water. I cook so they were tender, but still had some tooth. They were good, and a nice change from my beloved refried beans.

I liked the quinoa too. I used some of the ingredients from my nacho sauce and added some salsa to the cooking liquid. They were cheezy, a bit spicy and were a great replacement for cheese in a taco. The only problem I had was that I got distracted and left them to boil instead of turning them to simmer. So, I added a little more water, probably too much. When they began to cool, they clumped. But that may have been user error.




Cheezy Quinoa
2 oz pimentos
2 tbs nutritional yeast
1/2 lemon, juiced
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup water
1 cup salsa
1 cup quinoa

Blend together the pimentos, nutritional yeast, lemon juice, salt and water. Add the salsa and set aside. Rinse the quinoa several times, then pour into a sauce pan. Fry the quinoa until it browns slightly, then add the liquid and salsa. Stir together and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer until the liquid is absorbed and the quinoa is tender, but still firm.

The flavor is strong and is meant as an accompaniment. It main be overpowering as a main course.

6 Servings: 129 cal (2 g fat, 24g carbs, 6g protein)

I'm always looking for new ways to use quinoa. I'm also on an extended cumin kick and a mini lentil kick. So this dish was probably meant to be. I've been stewing about how to put this together, which veggies to use and how to spice it and this is what I came up with. In the future, I may just go for more cauliflower and nix the peas. The peas weren't bad, but they didn't really add anything whereas the cauliflower was perfect.



Quinoa and Lentil Pilaf
1/2 cup dry lentils
1 cup uncooked quinoa, rinsed
2 tbs vegetable oil
1 tsp cumin seed
1 onion, chopped
1 jalapeno pepper, minced
1 tbs ginger, minced
1/2 head caulflower florets
1/2 cup frozen peas
1/2 tsp garam masala
1/2 tsp salt
pinch Asafoetida (hing), optional
10 curry leaves, optional
1/4 cup chopped cinantro
1/2 lime, juiced

In a separate pan, bring 1 1/2 cups water to a boil, add the lentils, cover and simmer until the lentils are done, but still firm, about 20 minutes. If any water is left over, drain. Otherwise set aside.

In a large saute pan, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the cumin seeds and fry until they begin to pop. Add the onion and jalapeno pepper and saute until soft. Stir in the ginger and quinoa. Saute until the quinoa toasts a bit, then add the cauliflower, peas, garam masala, salt, asafoetida, curry leaves and 2 cups of water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer until the quinoa is done, but still toothsome. Stir in the lentils, cilantro and lemon juice.

5 Servings: 285 cal (8g fat, 44g carbs, 12g protein)

I've been working on these for a while now. I made zucchini cakes earlier this summer and, on a whim, decided to add some quinoa. They tasted great, but the patty squished out the back of the bun with every bite. I've been playing with consistency and cook times and arrived on this fairly simple version. This is a great weeknight meal, because you can make the dough a day ahead of time and just form the patties and pop them in the oven after work. They freeze and reheat well too.

These patties had an unexpectedly meaty tooth. I intended to make zucchini cakes that were not meat and didn't try to be meat. I rather enjoyed the texture. I'm making some sausage tomorrow and I think I'll try some quinoa in a batch of Italian Sausage.

Anyway, here it is:



Zucchini Cakes
3 medium zucchini, grated
1/2 cup vital wheat gluten
1/3 cup quinoa, rinsed
1 cup water
2 tbs Earth Balance Margarine
1/4 cups shallot, minced
1 tsp Old Bay Seasoning (a little more if you like)
Vegetable oil for baking sheet.

Shred zucchini into a colander and sprinkle salt over the shreds. Allow to drain for 30 minutes. Rinse thoroughly and put into cheese cloth. Twist and squeeze to remove any remaining moisture.

While the zucchini drains, rinse quinoa. Bring 1 cup of water and quinoa to a boil. Simmer, uncovered until the water has been absorbed. Transfer to a bowl and refrigerate until cool. When zucchini and quinoa are ready, combine all ingredients, stir thoroughly and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes, or up to overnight.

Pour just enough oil to coat a cookie sheet and put in oven while it preheats to 425°. Fashion zucchini mixture into six patties. Place patties onto cookie sheet and bake for 25-30 minutes, turning once.

This was originally meant to be stuffed peppers, but it was a lot of work and the pepper flavor didn't penetrate the stuffing well. It became a pilaf. I like to make this on Sunday and have it for lunches during the week. Sometimes I heat it, but it's good cold too.



Quinoa Pilaf with Roasted Poblanos
2 fresh poblano peppers
1 tbs vegetable oil
1 medium onion, chopped
8 oz fresh shitake mushrooms, stems removed
2 cups quinoa, rinsed
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 tbs fresh thyme, chopped (or 1 tsp dried)
4 cups water

Peppers: Set the oven to broil. Line a baking sheet with foil and put the peppers under the broiler (top rack), turning with tongs as the skin begins to scorch. Turn every 3-5 minutes. This should take about 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly. While the quinoa is cooking peel away the skins, scoop the seeds out and roughly chop the flesh. Set aside.

Mushrooms: Remove and discard the stems and slice the caps very thinly. Once sliced, roughly chop the mushrooms and set aside. Note: shitake mushrooms DO taste better, but they are pricey too. You can substitute the shitakes with cremini mushrooms with good results.

Pilaf: Add 1 tbs oil to a 2 quart sauce pan. Saute the onion over medium-high heat,until it starts to soften. Stir in the chopped mushrooms and cook until the onion and mushrooms are cooked through. Add the quinoa, stirring often until the quinoa has toasted a bit. Add the water, salt, pepper and thyme. Bring to a boil and simmer uncovered, for about 15 minutes, until the moisture is absorbed. Stir in the chopped peppers and serve. Makes about 6 cups.

6 Servings: 270 cal (6g fat, 49g carbs, 9g protein)