Quinoa with Sesame Honey Broccoli

Inspiration for this dish came from the vibrant vegetarian recipes by Hetty McKinnon in “Community – Arthur Street Kitchen” cookbook.  Brisbane City Council has copies to borrow and I urge you to take the opportunity to drool over these delish dishes. 

My compromise, to keep Wilbur happy and eating broccoli, is to cook this recipe with a little chorizo.  I know it would be much healthier without, but, seeing him go back for seconds is very cheering.  Slowly, I am adding less and less meat to my vegetable based meal nights and he is happily eating more and more veggies.  Some nights are 100% vegetables. I feel that is a big win and we are on the right path to vegetables being the rightful hero of our meals and enjoying the varied flavours and textures of so many delicious vegetables.  Our little veggie and herb garden is a source of great delight and we can taste the difference when we use our fresh-picked produce.    Enjoy!

Serves 4 and maybe some for lunch the next day

Ingredients

1 cup quinoa – rinse well before cooking  (see below)

Splash Australian Extra Virgin Olive Oil  OR Rice Bran Oil

1 red onion – finely sliced

½ - 1 chorizo sausage – cut into thin slices  (optional – omit for vegetarian meal)

2 cloves garlic - crushed

1 - 1/2 large heads of Broccoli – shred the stems finely and cut the florets into slender bite size pieces so they cook quickly   OPTION:  steam or blanch the broccoli for a couple of minutes, drain well then add to the frypan.  This will reduce cooking time in the pan.

2 baby zucchini – finely sliced / cut into batons  or use 1 medium zucchini

1 cup frozen green baby peas

Good handful fresh green beans – trimmed and cut into bite size lengths

Handful baby spinach leaves or Baby kale leaves

2 teaspoons sesame oil

2 tablespoons Nigella Seeds and /or Black Sesame seeds

1/3 cup coriander leaves – torn  OR   mint leaves

Sauce.  Whisk all ingredients together.  Taste   (and adjust if needed)

1 tablespoon  Tahini paste   OR peanut paste loosened with a 2 tablespoons of warm water  (I love sesame seeds but not a fan of Tahini paste ! )

1 teaspoon Tamari   OR  use soy sauce

2 tablespoons Mirin  (sold in Asian food section in many supermarkets) sweet rice wine

1 tablespoon Honey

1 tablespoon Apple Cider Vinegar  (if none, maybe try lemon juice)

1 tablespoon sesame oil

Salt and Pepper to taste (I did not need any)

Method

Use a large saucepan of water, add the well-rinsed and drained Quinoa and bring to a boil.

Reduce to a steady simmer and cook for approx. 17 - 20 mins.

Drain the quinoa well and set aside.

Heat a splash of oil in a wide frypan.

Add the onion (and chorizo if using)  - still cooking and stirring

Stir in the broccoli and cook until onion softens and chorizo crisps up and broccoli just tender.

(It is okay to add some of the other veggies whilst the broccoli is cooking)

Stir through the garlic, zucchini, peas and beans

Mix the spinach / kale leaves through

Cook until veggies are just tender and still crisp

Add the reserved quinoa – you might not need all.  Any remaining quinoa can be refrigerated and used in a salad the next day

Remove from heat

Lightly toss the extra sesame oil, nigella seeds / black sesame seeds through so well combined

Gently drizzle the prepared sauce over and gently toss to evenly coat the veggies.

Taste and add salt/pepper if you think it is needed (I did not need to)

Serve scattered with the coriander or mint leaves

Enjoy!   Colleen  

Speedy Berry Icecream Temptation

When Valentine's Day falls on a work day it can be tricky to make a decadent dessert. I was Inspired by a photo using mangoes to make / assemble this super-easy but delicious berry dessert.  Weis Bars are a Queensland icon with lots of flavours to choose from. Simply choose a complementary flavour of Weis to match the icecream. Easy.  These bars were from their yoghurt selection and tasted great with the creamy icecream. Enjoy!

Feed Your Inner Cook

           






Time -  minutes!
Serves - 8 slices ie 8 people.   Easily halve the ingredients and make a smaller version

Ingredients

6 Weis Bars
1 Litre Icecream
punnet of raspberries, strawberries
Raspberry sauce 

Method (too easy)

Leave the icecream out of the fridge while you prepare the dish/bars
Line a loaf tin with generous amount of clingwrap in both directions.  It needs to be able to fold over and cover the top.
Unwrap the Weis Bars and layer on base of plastic in tin.
Scoop the icecream into the tin covering the Weis Bars and smooth down gently to avoid air pockets.
Carefully fold the overhanging plastic over the icecream.
Place the completed loaf tin in a plastic freezer bag and secure to avoid drying out.
Leave at least 4 hours to firm up.
Remove from freezer and unwrap onto a platter, base layer upwards.
Scatter with berries and dollops of sauce.
                                                  Enjoy!  Colleen

PS
I purchased all the ingredients personally and was not paid to endorse these products.  I simply like Weis Bars because they taste sooooo good and originated in Queensland. 

Curried Eggs Easy As

I usually have hard boiled eggs in the fridge ready for an easy salad lunch or an egg and lettuce wrap or the basis of a quick dinner.  My other standby is small containers of cooked rice (usually brown rice) ready in the freezer - so versatile and a great time-saver.

Curried Eggs by Feed Your Inner Cook

This recipe can be altered to your preference - I use different veggies every time! It makes great leftovers for lunch the next day too.
Enjoy!

I have listed ingredients for 4 serves - make more or less as you need

Ingredients

8 Hard boiled eggs - shelled and halved.  (I allow 2 eggs per person)

2 onions - sliced
2 cloves garlic crushed
Splash Rice Bran Oil
2 tablespoons of curry powder.  Add more if you like it a little stronger.
shake of dried chilli flakes
1 teaspoon ground Turmeric
1 teaspoon ground cumin
Curry leaves fresh - approx 10cm stem with leaves attached (optional)
Salt and Pepper to taste
1/4 red capsicum diced
2 handfuls green beans - trimmed and cut into 3 cm pieces
Few frozen peas
400 ml tin coconut milk (and a little water)
2 handfuls baby spinach leaves
1 tomato - diced
1 tin brown lentils - rinsed and well drained

1/4 iceberg lettuce - roughly shredded
Finely shredded parsley, mint or basil for garnish
Cooked rice to serve

Method
heat the oil in a wide pan and soften the onions.
Add the curry powder, turmeric, chilli and cumin.  Stir til fragrant
Stir through the garlic, capsicum, green beans, curry leaves and peas until almost cooked.
Add the coconut milk and tomatoes and heat. Add a little water if too thick.
Quickly stir in the baby spinach leaves and lentils.
Taste and add salt and pepper if needed.
Remove the curry leaves and stem.
Place the halved eggs in the coconut curry and gently stir without breaking up the eggs.
Remove from heat.
Stir the lettuce through very gently.
Serve with rice and the parsley mint garnish.
Enjoy!  Colleen

Summer Vegetable Salad

Wilbur was talking in his sleep last night and I am sure I heard him say “more salads! More salads for dinner!!”. 

I am happy to oblige with this easy, veggie-filled bowl of goodness that can be served cool or just warm.  Like so many of my recipes, it utilises lots of bits and pieces, the odd veggie in the crisper with brown rice and chickpeas!  I make enough for lunch the next day as well.  Feel free to substitute your veggie favourites adding more or less to your preferences. Simple.  Enjoy!

Summer Vegetable Salad by Feed Your Inner Cook

Serves 5  (but add more/less to suit your needs) Great as lunch the next day too

Ingredients  (vary to suit you – options, zucchini , basil, parsley peas etc)

1 cup cooked brown rice (substitute pearl barley, white rice etc)

½ Jap Pumpkin – diced bitesize

Splash Australian Olive Oil

2 red onions – sliced

2 cloves garlic – crushed

½ small cauliflower – cut into florets

Handful green beans – cut in half

Handful baby kale leaves – roughly chopped

2 shallots – sliced

Shake of dried chilli flakes

Few stalks of parsley leaves – finely chopped

Big handful baby spinach leaves

½ lettuce – roughly torn up

1 tin chickpeas – rinsed and drained

2 stalks celery – sliced

100 -200 gram Fetta cubed.

Few black olives

Salt and Pepper to taste

big handful fresh mint leaves – roughly shredded

Splash Australian good Extra Virgin Olive Oil to taste

½ small lemon – juice and zest (may not need all the juice)

2 tablespoons pine-nuts – lightly toasted in frypan before starting cooking meal (or pistachios)

Method

In a large wide frypan

Lightly toast the pine nuts and reserve for garnish

Heat a splash of oil in the pan and soften the onion

Add the garlic, cubed pumpkin and cauliflower.  Cook until just begins to soften. Pumpkin should be soft to eat but the remaining veggies need a little crunch texture.

Add the beans, kale, shallots, parsley and chilli – stir through until beans cooked but still crunchy

Stir through the cooked rice and chickpeas.

Remove from heat

When still warm but not hot, add the baby spinach and sliced celery

Mix the cubed fetta and olives into the salad

Taste and add Pepper. Maybe salt, though fetta and olives will be salty already

Toss the lettuce and mint through.  Reserve some mint leaves for garnish

Drizzle with a little good Olive oil, some of the lemon juice and the zest.

Taste and add more lemon juice, oil or pepper if needed.

Serve on a platter and sprinkle over the toasted nuts and reserved mint leaves.

Enjoy!  Colleen