Simply Norma

Awhile back, I bought a large bag of Quinoa so I’ve been looking for new recipes to try. The one challenge I have is that I like quinoa but my husband has more of a “I’ll eat it if it’s served” mentality. That’s a big difference in how one looks at this “perfect” food (so called by a nutritionist I know because of its low carb high protein properties).

The Quinoa Stuffed Zucchini recipe that I’m posting was good and it serves two (2) people which was even better as I didn’t have to worry about leftovers sitting in our refrigerator. If you try it, let me know how you like it. My husband (who likes spicy foods) said it was too bland whereas I (who don’t like spicy food) thought it was perfect.

Ingredients

• 1 cup water
• 1/2 cup quinoa, well rinsed
• 4 medium zucchini, halved lengthwise and ends trimmed
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 small onion, minced
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• Salt & fresh pepper
• 1/3 cup chopped pitted black olives
• 1/2 cup pimientos
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
• 1/2 cup of dry bread crumbs

DIrections

1. Lightly oil a 9 x 13 inch baking pan and set it aside
2. In a large saucepan, bring the water to a boil over high heat
3. Add the quinoa and salt the water (if you wish) then return to a boil
4. Reduce the heat to low, cover the pot and simmer until the quinoa is tender (about 15-20 minutes)
5. While the quinoa is cooking, scoop out the zucchini flesh but leave the shells intact and chop it up
6. Steam the zucchini shells until slightly softened, about 5 minutes, then set aside to cool
7. In a large skillet, heat one tablespoon of oil over medium heat then add the onions, garlic and chopped zucchini. Add salt and pepper to your taste. Cover and cook until the vegetables are tender, approximately 10 minutes
8. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
9. In a large bowl, combine the cooked quinoa with the onion and zucchini mixture. Add the olives, pimentos and parsley to the mixture. Mix everything together.
10. Stuff the zucchini shells with the quinoa mixture then sprinkle the top with bread crumbs and arrange the zucchini in the pan.
11. Add 1/4 inch of water to the bottom of the pan. Cover the pan with foil and wrap it tightly. Bake until the filling is hot approximately 20- 30 minutes.
12. Uncover the pan and bake 10 minutes longer to lightly brown the topping
13. Serve immediately.

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I found another delicious recipe. This one is vegan and the recipe made quite a bit for two people (for those who aren’t vegan, you can add chicken to the recipe). My husband thought this recipe needed more flavor but I thought it was fine the way it was.

Ingredients

• 12 ounces dried rice noodles
• 1/3 cup soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• 2 tablespoons light brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon tamarind paste (see note below)*
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 3 tablespoons water
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 3 tablespoons canola oil
• 1 pound extra firm tofu, drained, pressed and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
• 1 small red onion, quartered and sliced into 1/4 inch slices
• 4 green onions, minced
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/3 cup coarsely chopped dry-roasted unsalted peanuts
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 cup bean sprouts (for garnish)
• 1 lime, cut into wedges (for garnish) 

Directions

(I made the mistake of not starting with the tofu first which made dinner a lot later than it should have been,  so … here’s the directions for preparing the tofu first.)

Tofu Preparation

1. Remove the tofu from the package
2. Cut the block into slabs and place the slabs on a baking sheet lined with paper towels
3. Weigh down the slabs with a baking sheet topped with heavy canned goods and let it sit for an hour
4. After the hour (when most of the water has been removed from the tofu) cut the tofu into 1/2 inch pieces

Food Preparation

1. Soak the noodles in a large bowl of hot water until softened which takes anywhere from 5 to 15 minutes depending on the noodle you’re using
2. Drain the noodles well and rinse them under cold water
3. Transfer the noodles to a bowl and set them aside
4. In a small bowl, combine the soy sauce, lime juice, sugar, tamarind paste, tomato paste, water and crushed red pepper. Stir this together and set it aside.
5. In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of the oil over medium heat. Add the tofu and stir-fry until golden brown (5-10 minutes). Transfer this to a plate and set it aside.
6. In the same skillet, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon oil over medium heat then add the onion and stir-fry for 1 minute.
7. Add the green onions and garlic then stir-fry for 30 seconds.
8. Add the cooked tofu and cook about 5 minutes tossing occasionally.
9. Add the cooked noodles and toss to combine and heat everything through.
10. Stir in the sauce and cook through, tossing everything together so it’s evenly coated with the sauce. (You can add additional water if it seems too dense for you — a tablespoon at a time …)
11. When the noodles are hot, put them on a platter and sprinkle with peanuts and cilantro.
12. Garnish with the bean sprouts and lime wedges.
13. Serve this meal hot.

*I wasn’t able to find tamarind paste locally so I used the substitution they recommended which was 1 teaspoon brown sugar (or you could use molasses) with 1 teaspoon of lime juice.

Quite a delicious meal! I decided to add some more veggies to the meal also — brocolli and carrots.  My husband had to wait an hour longer than normal for this meal as I thought I had read the recipe all the way through but didn’t account for the tofu preparation time.  Oh well … live and learn.

This recipe is from the 1000 Vegan Recipes Cookbook that I have found to be quite useful because of its tasty recipes.

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This recipe for chicken fajitas is quite tasteful but be careful if you don’t like your food spicy. I adjusted the ingredients for myself (because I don’t like spicy food) and it still had a wee bit of a kick to it. So feel free to adjust as you go along …

Ingredients

• 4 chicken breasts, boneless and skinless
• 2 green bell peppers, halved and sliced
• 2 medium onions, halved and thickly sliced
• 1 tomato, quartered
• Cilantro (optional)

I hope you enjoy it as much as my family did.

Note:  Not sure where the original recipe came from …

Whew! This recipe was a wee bit spicy although I ate it so it’s probably won’t be too spicy for those of you who like spicy foods. Definitely a keeper.

This recipe assumed that I had everything prepared ahead of time so get your ingredients ready before following the directions.

Ingredients

• 6 Flour Tortillas
• 1/2 cup jack cheese, shredded
• 1/2 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
• 2 skinless chicken breasts, boiled til cooked, then shredded
• 2 tablespoons spicy peanut sauce (see below)
• 2 green onions, sliced

Directions

1. Place a tortilla in a pan then sprinkle cheese, chicken, onion and spicy peanut sauce over half of it.
2. Fold the tortilla in half so it covers the filling and cook this until the quesadilla is golden brown on both sides (turn once) and the cheese is melted.

Spicy Peanut Sauce Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon peanut oil
• 1 tablespoon green curry paste (red can also be used)
• 1/4 cup coconut milk
• 1/4 cup chicken or vegetable stock
• 3 tablespoons fish sauce
• 2 tablespoons lime juice
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons peanut butter
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• 2 tablespoons peanuts (roasted and crushed)

1. Heat the oil in a pan
2. Add the curry and saute until fragrant
3. Add the remaining ingredients and simmer it all until it thickens

A very easy recipe to follow. The Thai Coconut Milk can be found at just about any grocery store in the Asian section. Hope you try it and enjoy it as much as I did.

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This recipe is courtesy of a blog I follow called Closet Cooking. Click here to see the recipe at their website.