Quinoa Salad with Black Beans, Corn, Roasted Red Pepper, Tomatoes, Scallions, Cilantro and Lime!

030quinoa salad bowl

We love quinoa!

It is a great alternative to pasta in that it delivers the same creamy, chewy, texture but is high in protien. A complete protien, as a matter of fact.

Aside from it’s nutrtious profile it is delicious and versatile.

We love this salad!

It is a power packed meal that delivers flavor and energy for very little expense.

Get creative and use your favorite fresh ingredients to create your own quinoa delights!

022lime

I used lots of lime in this dish. It compliments the cilantro and brightens the tomatoes.

014Quinoa salad

Ingredients

1 cup quinoa and 2 cups water
5 scallions
2 medium tomatoes
1/2 roasted red pepper
1 cup black beans ( canned are fine )
1 cup corn
1/2 cup of finely chopped cilantro
2 Tbspn olive oil
1-2 limes

Method

Boil the quinoa. 10-15 minutes

Set aside and chop all the veggies

combine and add salt and pepper to taste.

Sqeeze lots of lime on the salad!

019quinoa salad

I mix the fresh veggies in when the quinoa is still a bit warm; it seems to bring all the flavors to their peak yet not cook them at all.

021quinoa salad lime

There is always room for more lime!

025quinoa salad

Garnish with avocado for an even richer flavor!

Meatless Monday! Picnic Style! Potato Salad, Eggplant Burgers and Corn on the Cob with Garlic Butter

057potato salad

This amazing potato salad recipe has endured a handful of incarnations.

Originally, it included bacon so I, a vegetarian, have been on a quest to replace that bacon flavor with a handful of substitutions.

I have tried avocado in the dressing, toasted pine nuts, immitation bacon; spices. You name it.

Nothing really captured not only the flavor of the bacon but the crispy texture or greasy mouthfeel, either.

Fried leeks were my next attempt to capture all of these elements that have always seemed to be missing from the veggie version of this very popular dish.

009potato salad

Recipe:

Chop and boil 4 lbs. of red skin potatoes

Chop 1 red bell pepper, 1 orange bell pepper, 1 yellow bell pepper

Chop 7-8 green onions

Chop 1 red onion

Fry 2 leeks until crispy

Add ingredients together when cooled

Mix togehter about 2 cups of Hellman’s Real Mayonnaise with about 2 Tbsn of yellow mustard

Salt and pepper to taste

015potato salad leeks

Learning about leeks was the next step.

My very knowledgable girlfriend gave me some useful tips when dealing with leeks:

Clean them very well as they have dirt in between the leaves and use only the white to bright green portion when frying or using for salads.

The dark green leaves can be used for soups and stews.

017potato salad leeks

027leeks potato salad

047potato salad leeks added

045potato salad

049potato salad cooked leeks and chopped veggies added

051potato salad dressing

050corn on the grill with garlic butter

This corn on the cob cooks on the grill. What could be easier!?

Open the husks and remove the silk

Mix together butter and crushed garlic and rub all over the corn

Close the husk and place on the grill. Delicious! and Easy!

060eggplant burgers

I used 1 medium eggplant and sliced into thick planks.

Then dredged them in flour, egg wash and Italian style bread crumbs and fried until golden.

Then I place them on a baking sheet and kept them at about 325 degrees until we were ready to make our burgers.

I toasted the buns with a bit of olive oil and made a mayo/spicy barbeque sauce to serve on the side.

102eggplant burger

054potato salad dressing added and mixed

My very handsome date, Wolf!

022wolf and shelly cookout

Southwest Salad for a Sunny Afternoon!

010southwest salad PD

Something light and “springy” was on my mind today.

A chill in the air did not stop the sunny skies from inspiring a salad full of all my favorites; avocado, black beans, corn, red onion, scallions and cilantro!

Lime and olive oil dressed this salad and allowed all the flavors to come through and keep it light.

006southwest salad PD

You can get really creative with tomatoes, olives, peppers…I used what I had on hand.

I tend to go heavy on the cilantro!
008southwest salad PD

Meatless Monday! Rice Pilaf with Pine Nuts and Garbanzo Beans

014Meatless Monday! Rice Pilaf with Pine nuts and Garbonzo beans PD

Meatless Monday! has become an event around here.

Often, I’ll have guests and serve cocktails.

The children are always looking forward to what the day will bring.

Today, I gave careful consideration to Meatless Monday! and decided that trading meat for copious amounts of cheese, eggs and cream wasn’t truly in the spirit of what I was trying to achieve.

The carbon footprint of Meatless Monday! could be improved.

Today’s meal is vegan.

It is a healthy and complete one pot dish.

You can look at it as a kind of cleanse from a weekend of dining out and a fresh start to the week.

005Meatless Monday! Rice Pilaf PD

The kids rolled in on a rainy cold afternoon and asked if there was something hot to eat.

This rice pilaf got rave reviews from my girls.

007Meatless Monday! Rice Pilaf PD

Ingredients

1 cup brown basmati rice
2 cups water
1 large carrot
1/2 white onion
3 scallions
4-5 cloves garlic
1/4 cup cilantro
1 can garbanzo beans
1 cup corn
1 cup peas
1/2 cup pine nuts
2 Tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

010Meatless Monday! Rice Pilaf PD

Method

In a large saute pan add olive oil, garlic, onion, carrots, rice and pine nuts.

Allow to simmer for a few minutes.

Then add corn, peas and scallions.

Allow to simmer a few more minutes then add water and cilantro and allow too cook until the rice is tender.

Salt and pepper to taste.

Garnish with more cilantro

013Meatless Monday! Rice Pilaf PD

Meatless Monday! Refried Rice and Beans with Avocado, Corn and Tomato Salsa!

018 fresh salsa with avocado

This meal is more than just rice and beans.

For my daughters I will turn these into big fat burritos with cheese and serve the salsa on the side with chips.

I enjoyed the vegan version of just rice and beans with a dollop of the salsa on top.

What I like the most was the cold crunchy salsa on top of the creamy hot beans and rice.

The girls are going to love this tonight. It’s nutritious and festive.

Rice and Beans

I boiled 1 cup of brown jasmine rice in 2 cups of water

I used 2 cans of pinto beans and cooked them in a frying pan with 4 big cloves of garlic

That’s it for that part.

Salsa

This also works as a salad;

2 avocados

3 medium sized tomatoes

The juice of 2 limes

A nice handful of fresh cilantro

½ of a medium sized onion

½ a cup of yellow corn

I wished that I had some olives on hand but I didn’t. I thought that would really make this pop.

For the burritos I use whole wheat flour tortilla and shredded Monterey Jack, or Manchego cheese.

027 burrito PD meatless monday

I roll the beans, rice and cheese together and bake in the oven for a bit then garnish with the salsa.

Of course, salt to taste

Enjoy!
011 rice and beans

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