Toasted Quinoa with Spinach, Blistered Tomatoes, and Walnuts

One of my new favorite things to do to remember vacations, other than take pictures and video, is buying cookbooks.  I try to find older cookbooks written by locals that may have more authentic recipes.  In New Orleans I was on the lookout but most of the cookbooks were from current chefs (yes, we went to Emeril's restaurant NOLA) or were written for tourists.  We were walking in New Orleans when we came upon a sign for a National Park.  I've been to many National Parks but all of them have been in wide open spaces, not in the middle of the city.  We went into the Jean Laffite National Historical Park, which was a small  courtyard and museum.  In the museum I found Talk About Good a cookbook from 1967 written by the Junior League of Lafayette Louisiana.  It is real cajun cooking from the 60s.  I don't know if I will make any of the savory recipes.  I am not a fan of cream, a lot of oil, grease or butter, or cheese and most of the recipes have these.  However, I think I could try to convert the sweet recipes to gluten free so I could use it.  Reading it is just as much fun as cooking for it, so it was a good buy!

One grain that the book definitely does not have in it is quinoa.  In my home, I use wild rice and/or quinoa as much as my go to basmati, jasmine, or long grain rice.   However, I have never toasted it before.  It adds an additional flavor profile.  Yes, this dish also includes blistered tomatoes.  It may seem like blistered tomato overload, but I made this dish around a month ago and it was the inspiration for my previous dish.

Toasted Quinoa with Spinach, Blistered Tomatoes, and Walnuts

Adapted from Fresh, Fast, and Vegetarian 

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups quinoa

3 Cups of vegetable broth

2 Tbs olive oil

3 garlic cloves minced

1 tsp coarse salt

1 1/2 cups cherry tomatoes

1 bag of baby spinach

1/2 cup walnut pieces

1/2 cup parmesan cheese

1/4 cup torn basil leaves

Rinse quinoa for 1 minutes in a fine mesh strainer and shake, removing as much water as possible.  Put 1 Tbs of oil into large skillet.  Add the quinoa and stir over medium heat until light brown.  This takes around 10 minutes.  Add garlic and cook for 30 seconds.  Then add 3 cups of vegetable broth and bring to a boil.  Cook, covered, over medium low heat until the water is absorbed and quinoa is cooked, approximately 20 min.  

Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in small skillet over medium high heat.  Add whole tomatoes and agitate them by shaking skillet back and forth for around 5 minutes.  You will se the tomatoes begin to blister and pick up some color.  Put to the side

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Lay walnut pieces on baking sheet and roast for 5 - 10 minutes until they start to brown.  Put to the side.  

Put spinach in the quinoa and cook over medium heat until wilted, around 3 minutes.  Add tomatoes, walnuts, cheese, basil and fluff to combine.  

White Bean and Sausage Pesto Soup

So last night was really stressful, that is why I feel a cold coming on. I came home from grocery shopping at 7:oo pm, ready to make my bbq baked beans. When I got to the space in my alley there was a white Escalade sitting between my house and the house next door that I have never seen before. It pulled up when I parked but backed up afterwards, trapping me in my spot. I got scared and went straight to my back door without my groceries, figuring that I would get them later, and I find my back door ajar. Now I have to point out there is another family that lives underneath us (and can be irresponsible) but it scared the heck out of me so I went straight to the front of my building and walked a few houses down and called the police. I guess if you dont sound like someone is actively killing you they dont go very quick so I waited outside and heard people coming out of the building but they didnt get in my downstairs neighbors car or in the white Escalade (which sped away when they got in). I waited out in the freezing cold for another 10 minutes without the cops coming by. It was around 8 degrees outside. Finally I couldn't handle it anymore so I went to the back door. It was closed but unlocked, which still freaked me out so I got in my car and pulled out quickly waiting for the cops. They showed about 2 minutes later and I drove right behind them but they didn't stop at my house and I didn't feel comfortable honking at police. I got out of my car behind them and waved my arms, but they just kept on going. I then drove away and sat in my car until my husband came home from the football game. He felt it might be the people downstairs and checked the house. We were ok, but I am so upset with the irresponsible people downstairs. It is not like we live in the country, the suburbs... we are in the city. My aides' son was shot and killed by someone in the hallway of his apartment. I cant wait until I get out of here.

So last week was really cold and my car was in the shop for a while so I couldn't go out to grocery shop. I wanted something warm and something I could make with the stuff in my cabinets and freezer. I didn't have much left but I managed to make a great meal (not vegetarian though- sorry!)

White Bean and Sausage Pesto Soup

Ingredients

1 pound of Italian sausage, removed from casing and crumbled

1 chopped onion

4 chopped cloves of garlic

6 cups of chicken stock

1 15 oz can of cannellini beans (drained)

2 Tbs of pesto (I used oregano pesto)

1 cup of spinach, coarsely chopped

1 1/2 cups cooked gluten free small shells

1 Tbs lemon juice

1 Tbs olive oil

1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

Salt and pepper to taste

Cook the sausage on medium heat in a pot until crumbled and cooked all the way through. Pour sausage onto paper towels to drain some of the fat. Add the olive oil in the same pan and add onion and garlic. Saute until tender. Add the sausage, beans, pesto, and red pepper flakes to onions in pot. Saute for 2 minutes then add chicken broth. Simmer for 20 minutes, uncovered. Add the spinach and simmer until it wilts. Take off of heat and mix noodles and in lemon juice.

Spinach Mushroom Fried Rice

I had a craving for spinach. Wow, that is weird to say. I'm still getting used to eating mostly vegetables and actually liking veggies that I would never have tried a year ago. My favorite spinach dish to make and to eat is a Korean side dish with garlic, soy sauce, and sesame seed oil (one of the best condiments ever). I've always made it with baby leaf spinach because that was what was on sale, and for some reason thought that all spinach was the tender small leaves. When I bought spinach for dinner this time, I bough the regular kind, and figured out that regular spinach is not one of my favorites. I was surprised there really aren't any spinach fried rice recipes out there, so I made one myself.

Does everyone ever plan making fried rice ahead of time? I always come up with the idea right before I make it. So I make the rice in the microwave, throw it in a baking dish, then into the freezer to cool it down. It would probably taste better being a day old but it still tastes good!

Spinach Mushroom Fried Rice

Ingredients

2 cups of dried Jasmine rice

3 cups of water

Vegetable oil

3 large eggs

1 tablespoon sesame seed oil

1 large onion, chopped

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 teaspoon minced ginger

4 tablespoons soy sauce

6 green onions, thinly sliced

3/4 cup of fresh shiitake mushrooms, sliced

1/2 cup of thinly sliced bamboo shoots

1 cup of baby leaf spinach

Make the rice and cool.

Make scrambled eggs with the eggs and place on a plate. Place a tablespoon of oil in pan or wok and stir fry onion until soft. Add the garlic and ginger and stir fry for 30 seconds. Add 2 more tablespoons of vegetable oil and stir in cooked rice, green onions, bamboo shoots, and mushrooms. Toss and mix until very hot. Then sprinkle with soy sauce and sesame seed oil and mix. Remove from heat, add eggs and spinach. Mix.