Adventures in Quinoa

Has anyone noticed that the price of bell peppers inexplicably shot through the roof? Seriously. They are like $4 a pop right now, right up there with $3 avocados and as a result I'm been skimping on my quinoa consumption. Usually, I make this amazing salad about once a week to have around for lunches and/or dinner, but I can't be expected to make it without avocado OR bell peppers! All I'd be left with would a bowl full of quinoa, lime juice, cumin, cilantro, green onions, black beans and toasted pumpkin seeds... which doesn't sound half bad now that I list all those delicious things out... but thats not the point! While disgusted by the price of avocados and bell peppers, and pondering what exactly we did to piss off Mexico and send produce prices through the roof (there is no fact in this... but I swear I heard something on NPR the other day...) I made a fantastic discovery... tomatoes are looking edible and affordable these days! Awesome. I bought a small bag of organic cherry tomatoes for $2 instead. Much better.

So instead of making my salad, which just isn't the same without satisfying chunks of avocado, I decided to make Quinoa-camole! Look at me branching out, eh? It is practically the same, but most drastically different because instead of the avocado and peppers (I think you get it by now) this salad uses tomatoes! And lime zest! Reviewing the recipe, I guess its not so similar... it is... and its not... you get the idea. Anyway, thanks, Wiggs, for inspiring me to move past my avocado/bell pepper obstacle. 

I have a tendency to not stick to the recipe....at all. Which is why my salad is nothing like the salad in the cookbook I originally found it in, and why this salad, which was inspired by quinoa-camole....is also nothing like quinoa-camole. What can I say? I'm a kitchen rebel. So this is what I did:

• 1 c quinoa, rinsed
• 1 1/2 c water

Bring water and quinoa to a boil. Lower heat, cover and cook for 15 minutes. In a separate bowl combine...

• chop one bunch cilantro and two green onions (or less, whatever. I am a cilantro fiend)
• quarter one pint cherry tomatoes
• zest one super juicy organic lime into bowl and squeeze juice over mixture (if your lime is not juicy, you might want to use two) 
• mix in 1 T cumin, salt, pepper and hot sauce to taste (okay, I threw in a little cayenne too... I am also a spice fiend...)
• rinse one can of black beans (or not canned if you have them lying around) and add to mixture
• add cooled quinoa

Optional (but totally delicious)...

• Toast raw pepitas in a skillet and add to quinoa salad. They add an interesting dimension. 

At this point.... you're done. Its easy. Awesome. Delicious. Good for you. The juice from the tomatoes give the quinoa-camole a much different feel than my avocado cilantro-lime concoction. Both tasty. Just different. 

A few years back I was having dinner at a co-op in the U district and someone told a joke along the lines of.... "whats the difference between a hippie and a yuppie?" (TONS of things, right?) "The yuppie sees food going bad and says, "ew, thats rotting throw it out" and the hippie says "quick eat that! before it goes bad!"" So anyway... I had some kale that was getting all wilty on me, so I chopped it up and threw it in - which worked grrrreat with all the juice from those tomatoes - but made this salad nothing like either of the salads I've been rambling on about. Just an idea. 

Veganomicon

Walking home from downtown on a very windy Saturday, I remembered I had a Barnes and Noble gift card burning a hole in my wallet. I've had my eye on Veganomicon for awhile now, and since it appears as though I am allergic to one or more of the foods I've eliminated, I'm always on the lookout for new ideas. This book is bursting with them -- and I cannot wait to give it a try. The moussaka with pine nut cream looks absolutely amazing! 

I'd rather support a small, local bookstore, but I do appreciate the inquisitive nature of B&N employees . On this particular visit, the cashier to customer banter went a little like this: 

"Oh, are you vegan?"

"No, but I often eat like one." (The truth is, I love cheese too much to be vegan.)

"This book has been very popular."

"I've heard good things. I'm excited to give it a try."

"Do you know what a vitamix blender is?" (What?! Where did that come from?)

"I do... but I find that my $30 magic bullet works just as well."

Reading this in the New York Times this morning makes me thankful for my 13 years of vegetarianism. Five out of ninety samples tested positive for MRSA? That is a) disgusting and b) a serious problem. 

Despite a secret love of cheese (which I may or may not be able to eat) I also dapple in the occasional serving of fish. Since dairy and soy are absent in my elimination diet, I have been subsiding on beans, legumes, grains, nuts, fruits and veggies. Which is fine, but I was starting to feel a little low on protein, leaving me feeling famished a few hours after eating. 

I picked up some wild caught salmon, and made Cherie's West Indian Curry. I'm in the midst of final papers and have very little time for cooking (which makes the elimination diet tricky, as I have to cook almost everything I can eat) so I had the brilliant idea of throwing everything into the crockpot that we never use, so I could hit the library. I altered Cherie's recipe a bit (as I tend to do) throwing in an entire can of coconut milk, a can of tomatoes and then a half cup of lentils. I came home a couple hours later to a beautifully aromatic curry with lentils. I cooked the salmon on a bed of onions and lemon slices, and covered it in olive oil and lemon juice. I have yet to try one of Cherie's recipes and not be impressed - this one was no exception! She suggests pineapple to round out the flavors - I couldn't agree more! It really adds a noticeable depth. 

Blueberry Banana Muffins

These muffins are wheat-free, gluten-free, vegan, and totally awesome. 

• 1 1/4 c brown rice flour 
• 1/4 c garbanzo bean flour
• 1/4 c tapioca flour
• 1/4 t cinnamon 
• 1 1/2 t baking powder
• 1 t baking soda
• 1/2 t salt
• 1/4 c flax seeds
• 3/4 c warm water
• 1/3 c oil
• 1/3 c sugar
• 1/3 c almond milk
• 1 t vanilla
• 2 ripe bananas
• 1 cup blueberries

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Blend the flax seeds and warm water for two minutes and set aside. 
   
3. Combine the dry ingredients in a medium sized bowl. 
4. In a separate bowl, mix the oil and sugar. 
5. Dice the banana and add to the oil and sugar mixture, mashing a little with a fork. Add the remaining wet ingredients, including the flax/water mixture.
6. Fold wet ingredients into the dry, and add blue berries. 
7. Spoon batter into muffin liners, and bake for 30 minutes. 
8. Enjoy!

Come monday, I'll be able to introduce the eliminated foods, one at a time into my diet. I cannot believe its almost been two weeks already! I've been managing pretty well, Adam even made me these rice cake tostadas the other night for dinner: 

Sounds a little strange, but they were really good! We've also been having some super veggie intense stir fry - although I do really miss tofu and all soy based sauces - I've been using a combo of garlic/ginger/chili and sesame oil and its working out great. 

Breakfast has been mostly warm quinoa with berries, chopped almonds, cinnamon and rice milk or a banana and peanut butter. To mix things up a bit, I made a green smoothie this morning with: almond milk, banana, a handful of spinach, 1 T flax seeds, frozen blueberries and frozen pineapple. I was a little nervous about the flax seeds, but they were great! Blending flax seeds causes them to thicken, which is why they work as an egg replacer. Boost of Omega 3's for the day? Check!

Potato Chickpea Curry

I was searching through my list of posts this morning because I thought I had drafted this last night. Apparently I'm going crazy because I most certainly did not, but I did find an old draft where I had written only this: 

 Environmental Degradation in the Tropics was hands-down the best class I took as an undergraduate at the University of Washington. I took the course one Summer after a long stretch in Costa Rica. It took my heart and tore it to pieces.

Its a bit dramatic, but absolutely true. Changed the way I feel about trade and tropical commodities forever. Don't even get me started on shrimp...

This post is actually about curry, not global environmental issues. Yesterday was my first official day on the elimination diet, and I went home early with a splitting headache due to inadequate caloric preparation for the day ahead of me. I went to Madison Market immediately and stocked up on some wheat, corn, gluten, dairy, soy and egg free essentials. Basically, ingredients for cooking up an allergen free storm. Whee. 

I found this one over at Meaty Vegan (and she found it over at Simply Recipes) I more or less paid attention to the recipe, tripled the spices as I tend to do, and ended up with something quite delicious. 

Saute together: 

• 1 T coconut oil
  
• 1 onion, diced
  
• 1 T ginger, minced
  
• 1 T cumin
  
• 1 T coriander
  
• 1 t cayenne 
  

To this add: 

• 1 large tin diced tomatoes
  
• 1 tin coconut milk
  
• 2 tins garbanzo beans, rinsed
  
• 1 sweet potato (I had one around, so threw it in - it was an awesome addition)
  
• About 10 small potatoes
  
• Chili's (the recipe called for anaheims seeded and diced - I couldn't get them at the store, so had to use diced green and it wasn't hot enough for my taste)
  

Add water as needed (about a cup) to have enough liquid to cover potatoes. Simmer until potatoes are soft, and serve over brown rice. Add salt to taste. 

Vegan Lasagna and Pineapple (Rightside Up) (Cup)Cake(s)

Last night Emmy and I prepped the vegan lasagna recipe - with our own addition of zucchini and spinach added to the layers (who doesn't want to up their vegetable intake?!) then took Lucy for a run around greenlake. Not our best run ever, Lucy's leash skills were atrocious. Half the time she spent pulling us around the lake and the other half yanking us to her distractions on either side of the path. Embarrassing, really, but only because her lack of least etiquette is our fault. When we came home I had just enough time to make the batter for the Pineapple Rightside Up Cupcakes from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World (we are on a quest to try all the cupcakes in this gem of a book - the recipes are fairly small, so we don't feel too guilty) while Emmy sauteed some kale and chard to have with our lasagna.

The vegan lasagna was excellent. The addition of fennel to the sauce was new to me, but gave it an interesting flavor. The tofu was perfect as a substitute for ricotta, without mimicking ricotta (which I love when I choose to eat it) or being too tofu based. We used raw zucchini and it came out perfect - just firm enough without being undercooked. I am definitely an advocate of Cherie's recipes - I've made a few and they have all come out amazing. My favorite so far has been her Vegan Indian, it was incredible. A hit with all members of our household and our dinner guest, the lovely, MegV.

The pineapple cupcakes were delicious - as everything from the book has been so far. Emmy voted the pumpkin chocolate chip the winner, while I favor the Mexican hot chocolate. Gus came home from class too late for me to get his vote, and Adam has escaped to Lopez for the week, we'll see if there are any around for him to try come Friday...