Simple Greek Avocado Quinoa Salad

A salad made for simpletons.  Okay, so maybe the term is a bit pejorative, but you get the idea.  This recipe is as easy as chopping vegetables and following package instructions.  Yet, the final product is vibrant and delectably gourmet.  Plus, quinoa is that magically filling grain that is guilt and gluten free, so it won’t weigh you down or leave you hankering for more.

Tonight’s dinner was one of those “throw-this-together- after-work-because-I’m-starving” deals.  When I’m hungry there isn’t time to spare on being hung up on some missing ingredient from an over-the-top recipe.  So, while it is no great date meal or anything fancy to impress the folks with, it was just what I needed for dinner tonight.  

 The texture was a perfect yin yang – the crunchy quinoa contrasted with the velvetiness of the avocado made for textural bliss.  The taste was fresh and perky – tomatoes, parsley, and feta are naturally bright and lively flavors that made the salad taste light and refreshing.   I’m not a huge fan of salads when they are made up of “rabbit food”, i.e. bags of pre-chopped iceburg lettuce.  But this is the kind of salad I’ll have seconds of. 

For those days when you are on the go, this is a healthful, tasty salad that would be a perfectly packable lunch or a super side salad.

 Simple Greek Avocado Quinoa Salad

Ingredients:

½ cup quinoa

1 avocado, ¼ inch cubes

½ cup grape tomatoes, quartered

2 green onions, sliced

2 T fresh parsley, chopped

1/3 cup feta cheese

Salt and pepper

Instructions:

1.       Cook quinoa according to package instructions (I use broth instead of water and add ½ a clove of garlic for more flavor).

2.       Prepare all other salad ingredients.

3.       Mix together quinoa and salad ingredients, hot or cold and enjoy! Yep, it’s that easy. 

Orange Adobo Sweet Potatoes, Peas, and Quinoa

 Sweet potatoes are the new Russet potato.  In the restaurant scene, we have already seen the starchy switch from the traditional French fried potato to the sweet potato alternative.  But is this just another food fad?  Yet another outlet to feed our secret addiction to all things saccharine sounding?

First, let us dispel the notion that sweet potato implies sugary potato.  Although that may have been the best way to convince us to eat them as kids, it is limiting.  Now, because of that incriminating description, “sweet”, we automatically assume that sweet potatoes are already sugar soaked.  

 On the contrary, sweet potatoes have a creative and complex sweetness.  Envision her at a masquerade, weaving in and out of various masks and disguises.  Discover that beyond her overdone, cloying sweetness, she can be an irresistibly spicy siren.  Dressed in adobo sauce and decorated with orange zest, I uncovered the spicy siren side of my sweet potatoes.

The chili sauce gave the sweet potato a vibrant, evocative taste, yet allowed it to retain much of its earthy quality.  Sprinkled with the fresh zing of cilantro, and then smoothed out by the creaminess of goat cheese, was the perfect way to finish each bite.  My experiments with sweet potatoes have made me appreciate their versatility, and I am encouraged by their rewarding results.

Note about cooking sweet potatoes:  Add some fat to that!  Sautéing your sweet potato with a small amount of fat, such as olive oil, actually helps your body pick up more of the antioxidant beta-carotene that is found in sweet potatoes.  You can also add fats (such as olive oil, nuts, cheese) after cooking to help the bioavailability of the antioxidants.  Other recommended ways to cook your sweet potatoes are steaming and boiling.  These methods give you the fullest amount of fiber, vitamin A, and antioxidants. 

Orange Adobo Sweet Potatoes, Peas, and Quinoa

Ingredients:

3 T olive oil

1 clove garlic, finely chopped

1 medium sized sweet potato, chopped into ½ inch cubes

½ - 1 cup water (when needed to cook potatoes)

½ cup frozen peas

2 T – ¼ cup adobo sauce (depending on how spicy level tolerance)

2 tsp orange zest, grated

¼ cup cilantro, chopped

1-2 oz goat cheese

1 cup cooked quinoa

Instructions:

1.       Heat a medium sized pan over medium heat until very warm, add olive oil.

2.       Add garlic, sauté garlic until browned.

3.       Keeping pan between medium and medium high heat, add sweet potatoes, sauté until just soft, adding water when needed.  About 7-8 minutes.

4.       After about 5 minutes of cooking the sweet potatoes, add the frozen peas. 

5.       Add in the adobo sauce and orange zest.  Stir to coat and combine.

6.       Add cilantro, reserve some for garnish. 

7.       In bowl, spoon cooked quinoa into the bottom.  Layer on top the sweet potato mixture. Place cheese on top.  Sprinkle with cilantro. 

Makes about 2-3 cups.

Asparagus Quinoa with Spicy Butter

   

In lieu of traditional holiday foods focused on fattening you up, I decided to go light for dinner.  It’s not that I despise Christmas cookies, mashed potatoes, or dinner rolls.  It’s half the reason I love being home for the holidays.  I’m just trying to cut down the amount of waddling from the dinner table this season.  

Quinoa has been a health food mystery to grocery stores and home pantries alike.  What do you do with it? Is it a grain? Does it taste good? Is it filling? Truth is quinoa [pronounced keen-wa] is a grain-like crop harvested for its golden seeds.   When cooked, it has a fluffy texture much like couscous or rice.  The nutty flavor and snapping sensation you feel when you eat it makes it uniquely ‘quinoa’ to me.  It is gluten-free, high in protein, and goes with just about anything.  It is also a good source of magnesium, iron, copper and phosphorus.  It has been used cold in salads, hot in soups, as a side dish for dinner or even as breakfast porridge.  Tonight, I paired the quinoa with asparagus, chicken and a spicy butter.

Forget unsalted vs. salted butter –grocery stores should be advertising ‘spicy butter’.  Finally, a cream that carries a kick!  The heat comes from the hot sauce, obviously.  But it also comes from the puckering taste of vinegar and a pungent aroma of wine in the Dijon mustard.  The hearty, ‘green’ taste of asparagus goes well with the sour tinge of lemon juice and Dijon, and is rounded out by the creamy butter.  Pair with chicken or pork, and enjoy a lighter meal that still satisfies you beyond dinner.

Asparagus Quinoa with Spicy Butter

[Adapted from 101 Cookbooks]

Ingredients:

4 T butter, room temperature

2 tsp Dijon mustard

2 tsp lemon juice

Tabasco Sauce/ Frank’s Hot Sauce, to taste

Salt and pepper, to taste

2 T olive oil

1 bunch of Asparagus, cut into about 1 in pieces

1 cup cooked quinoa

1 1/2 cups cooked chicken

Instructions:

1.       In a bowl, cream first 5 ingredients to make the Spicy Butter.  Keep in fridge until ready to use.

2.       Prepare quinoa.  Keep warm.

3.       In a frying pan, sauté asparagus with olive oil until fork tender.

4.       Mix together the asparagus, quinoa, butter, and chicken.  Serve warm, with extra hot sauce if desired.