Mexican Quinoa

Here is a super easy vegetarian dish that makes for an easy dinner and heats up well as a tasty lunch! This recipe (found here) is really simple, with everything cooking together in one pan. I finished the last of it for lunch today, and it was even better than it was last night.

To make it, you will need:

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced
• 6 jalapenos, diced
• 1 cup of quinoa
• 1 cup vegetable broth
• 1 cup black beans (from can, drained)
• 1 can stewed tomatoes, chopped
• 1 cup corn kernels (from can, drained)
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• salt & pepper to taste
• 1/2 avocado, chopped
• 2 tbsp lime juice
• sour cream for garnish

1. Heat olive oil in a large sauce pan over medium high. Add garlic and jalapeno, cook until softening.
2. Add quinoa, vegetable broth, black beans, tomatoes, corn, chili powder and cumin. Stir to combine, add salt & pepper to taste. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat, cover and let simmer until quinoa is cooked through (~30 minutes).
3. Stir in avocado and lime juice. Serve with a dollop of sour cream and enjoy!

See? Super simple. If you aren't used to working with jalapenos, be careful. Cut off the tops, then slice in half lengthwise. Scoop out the seeds and ribs using a spoon. Once you are finished seeding all the jalapenos, slice and dice them up. When all the jalapenos are in the pan, wash you hands thoroughly with lots of soap. The juice will burn any open cuts or your eyes, so some people prefer to use gloves. If you like it a little spicier, feel free to leave some seeds in the mix or add some more aggressive hot peppers. I found 6 peppers was pretty strong, and the sour cream at the end was necessary for cooling. When it comes to avocado, leave it in the lime juice until it is ready to add to the pan to keep it from oxidizing (turning brown).

Spinach & Mushroom Lasagna

Saturday night I decided to make a Spinach & Mushroom Lasagna (originally found here). It worked out really well, and as of Monday after lunch, it is all gone. I actually ended up making two, since there was so much involved. You start by making a cream of mushroom soup, then assembling the lasagna, followed by baking. In the end, you get a cheesy, creamy baked pasta that is super satisfying.

To make it, you will need:

• 1/4 cup unsalted butter
• 375 g box of oven-ready lasagna noodles
• 454 g ricotta (small container)
• 600 g frozen chopped spinach (2 x 300 g packages), thawed & drained
• 400 g shredded mozzarella (about 3 packed cups)
• 1 cup grated Parmesan
• 3 tbsp fresh basil, chopped
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced
• 454 g cremini mushrooms, chopped
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1/4 cup flour
• 3 cups milk, at room temperature
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• pinch of nutmeg
• salt & pepper, to taste

The real pain was prepping everything, from chopping a whole pound of mushrooms, to thawing and draining the spinach, and shredding all that cheese. I also cut my noodles dry by scoring with a knife then snapping along the score line to fit in an 8 x 8 square baking dish.

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F.
2. Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add garlic, mushrooms, and onion. Cook until tender, stirring occasionally.
3. Whisk in flour with a fork until lightly browned (an actual whisk will just get filled with veggie bits, trust me).
4. Gradually stir in milk while fork-whisking constantly until slightly thickened. Just when you think it may never thicken and this is your life now, it will.
5. Stir in 1 tbsp of basil (a third of what you chopped), nutmeg, and oregano. Stir in salt & pepper to taste, remove from heat.
6. In one 9 x 13 baking dish (or split across two 8 x 8 dishes like I have done), spread 1 cup of the mushroom soup. Cover with lasagna noodles in a single layer, half the ricotta, half the spinach, 1/3 of the mozzarella, and 1/3 of the Parmesan. Repeat with a second layer of soup, noodles, ricotta, spinach, and cheeses. Cover with a layer of lasagna noodles, and the remaining soup, topped with cheeses and remaining basil.
7. Bake for 40 minutes, soup will be bubbling. Broil for 3 minutes to brown the cheeses on top.
8. Let sit for 15 minutes, and enjoy!

We ended up with two decently large lasagnas, and like I said, they are all gone now. The mushroom soup was really hearty on its own, and I would be interested in it alone on a crisp fall day. This was a really tasty and satisfying vegetarian dish where I didn't miss the meat.

Sweet Korean Lentils

After a busy July, here we are at a long weekend! We had no plans this weekend, and needed to stay home, eat healthy & save money. I found this recipe here, and it turned out great. My only complaint is how few leftovers there are. The lentil mix was so flavorful, it was really surprising. I really can't wait to try out more lentil dishes since it has been pretty easy to make and so tasty. I would probably double it next time and do less rice, more of the lentil mix. We both enjoyed it, despite our usual trepidation toward vegan food, and we really didn't miss the meat. The original recipe said 2 green onions, but I went too hard and chopped up 3. In reality, 1 probably would have been enough, so I have left it at 1 in the recipe (look at all that extra green onion). This recipe really satisfied us both in how quick and easy it was, but also how delicious!

To make this you will need:

• 1 cup basmati rice, uncooked
• 2 cups water
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 2 1/2 tbsp brown sugar
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 inch fresh ginger, minced
• 1 tsp sesame oil
• 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 tbsp peanut oil
• 1/2 white onion, chopped
• 1 cup red lentils, uncooked
• 1 green onion, chopped
• sesame seeds (for topping)

1. Cook the rice and set aside.
2. Heat peanut oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add white onion & cook until soft.
3. In a medium bowl, mix together water, soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic, ginger, sesame oil and red pepper flakes.
4. Add the mix and lentils to the skillet. Simmer until lentils are cooked and the liquid is all absorbed (~20 min).
5. Spoon over rice to serve & top with green onion and sesame seeds. Enjoy!

Lentil & Rice Veggie Burgers

Last night I decided to try a recipe I had been eyeing for a while on Pinterest. Of course I strayed quite a bit and made it very much my own, through laziness, necessity, and well... laziness. The original recipe is intended to be vegan, which I am not, nor was I interested in the concept of a 'flax egg'. I made 4 pretty decent sized patties, with more than enough avocado sauce for each (originally from here, adapted). Each was served on a fresh bun from International Bakery, a local vendor at the Covent Garden Market in downtown London. I also added some extra old white cheddar melted on top, spring mix lettuces, and ketchup. We roasted up some potato wedges tossed in fresh ground salt and pepper as a side. Overall it was a pretty delicious meal. In the future, I might want to step up the spiciness either through more in the patty or toppings - let me know if you have any ideas!

To make the patties, I used things we already had around. The original recommended brown lentils, but I already had red & green, so I made the sub to red. This means my lentil mix is a lot lighter in colour than I was expecting, but I don't think there is a real different in flavour. We also maintain a large jar of minced garlic (laziness, I know) that makes it a lot easier to add garlic to everything. One ingredient I have struggled to find in big box grocery stores was the garam masala spice blend. There is a PC Black Label blend that I found at Loblaws that has been doing the job, but I intend to branch out to more specialty stores in the future. The other note I would add is in regards to the BBQ sauce. This sauce is very vinegary and sweet, in the future I might want to try a smokier sauce.

To make the patties:

• 1 small white onion, chopped
• 1 inch fresh ginger, chopped
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1/3 cup walnut pieces
• 5 big basil leaves
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tsp garam masala
• 1 tsp fresh ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup uncooked basmati rice
• 3/4 cup uncooked red lentils
• 2 tbsp BBQ sauce
• 1 tsp peanut oil
• 3/4 cup panko

1. Cook rice and lentils separately in boiling water until done.
2. In blender or food processor combine onion, ginger, garlic and walnuts until finely chopped.
3. Add spices, basil, rice, and about half the cooked lentils. Blend until well combined, scraping down the sides regularly.
4. Transfer to a large bowl and add remaining lentils, egg, BBQ sauce, and oil. Mix evenly (with your hands!)
5. Add panko & mix. Add more panko if the mix is too wet, or another egg if it is too try.
6. Form 4 well-packed patties.
7. Grill on medium-high heat until crisp on the exterior (about 8 min per side), using cooking spray to prevent sticking.
8. Make your burger & enjoy!

To make the avocado sauce:

• 1 avocado
• 2 big basil leaves
• 1 clove of garlic, minced
• 1/2 tsp fresh ground black pepper
• 2 tsp lime juice

1. Blend together all ingredients, add salt & pepper to taste.

When making the avocado sauce, remember that avocados tend to brown as they oxidize in exposed air. I recommend waiting until the patties are ready to come off the grill before blending the avocado mix, as it only takes a couple seconds to make.

For all my blending and food processing, I use the Ninja Master Prep Pro System. We live in a tiny apartment with no balcony or access to a BBQ, so for all our grilling we use the Cuisinart Griddler. both of these products made for great gifts for our small space. We use each very often, and they are both easy to clean.