Quirky Quinoa August 27, 2011
Posted by cirellih in Food, Lunch.Tags: Carrots, Feta, Kalamata Olives, Kombucha, Quinoa, Tomatoes
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I have come to the realization that grains are not particularly easy to cook.
My first attempt at quinoa was salty.
My first attempt at wheat berries was an epic fail as you may have guessed… no appearance on the blog means that I burnt the entire pot after 45 minutes of simmering. Sadness all around.
My latest attempt at quinoa was a little overdone and bland. However, when I added in all the rest of the ingredients, it made for a delicious salad.
I decided to go in a Greek-ish direction for this salad. Lots of chopping was involved, but it was so worth it. Cherry tomatoes, carrots, cashews, and kalamata olives were all chopped up and added to the quinoa. Put a little feta cheese on top; have a little gingerberry kombucha on the side and you are in business.
The cashews and carrots added in a nice crunch. The feta cheese and olives gave it just the right amount of salt. It was a nice light summer salad all around.
Hopefully my next attempt at cooking grains will go perfectly… although I thought the third time was supposed to be the charm!
Snow in Spring? This Calls for Stew! April 13, 2011
Posted by cirellih in Dinner, Food, Health.Tags: Carrots, Lamb, Onions, Peas, Potatoes, Slow Cooker, Stew
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Really, Colorado? Snow?? In April???
Fine. Keep faffing about with the weather. I’ll go make a stew.
A delicious lamb stew at that. Combined with a hunk of nice, crusty sourdough bread there is nothing that combat cold weather better.
The Recipe:
1/2 lb lamb stew meat
1/2 cup baby carrots
1/4 cup peas
1 stalk of celery
1 onion, chopped
1 tbsp paprika
1/4 tsp dried thyme
3 cups beef stock
3 small potatoes
Put the carrots, onion, celery, lamb, thyme, paprika and beef stock into a crock pot. Put on high heat for 5 hours. When you are almost ready to eat the stew boil the potatoes and mash when they are ready. We thickened the broth a bit by taking some out and adding in corn starch. I like a little heartiness to my stew. At the very last minute, I added in my peas from yesterday’s dinner. What a great addition of color, texture and flavor. Mmm.
This was my easy take on Shepard’s Pie. No baking involved, but they flavors are all still there. As an added bonus, you can stick as many veggies as you like into a stew like this. I’ve made root vegetable shepard’s pies before, so squash or rutabagas would be a nice addition.
Irish Eyes Are Smiling March 17, 2011
Posted by cirellih in Dinner, Food, Plants.Tags: Cabbage, Carrots, Corned Beef, Daffodils, Potato, St. Patrick's Day
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HAPPY ST. PATRICK’S DAY!!!
In honour of such a festive occasion we had corned beef and cabbage… one of my favorite meals!
It turned out perfectly! Last year’s attempt in Baltimore was less than perfect. For some reason, the corned beef was not very flavorful, not very tender and generally not as tasty as one would have liked.
This year we got a flat cut… I don’t know if this makes any difference, but man oh man it was delectable. So juicy and tender, it was just falling apart when we took it out of the crock pot. The flavor was sublime! I really had to make sure that I stopped when I was full. Mmmm, I love me some corned beef!
Since this was a nice occasion, I also got some daffodils. Can’t wait until they are all blooming!
Aren’t they beautiful??? I just love daffodils… they mean that spring is around the corner!
Stir Fry, My oh My February 2, 2011
Posted by cirellih in Food, Health, Motivation.Tags: Baby Corn, Bamboo Shoots, Bok Choy, Broccoli, Carrots, Dinner, Red Pepper, Stir Fry
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One of the best parts of the Weight Watchers system is that vegetables are no points! I know that I’ve said that before, but really it makes life SO much easier.
So tonight, in honor of zero points vegetables, I made a stir fry. It is so easy so cram tons of vegetables into an incredibly flavorful dish.
Broccoli, carrots, red peppers, bok choy, baby corn and bamboo shoots all combined with chicken breast and a dash of stir fry sauce served on a bed of brown rice. What a flavorful, savory meal that it simple and pretty quick. Next time I need to remember to chop the veggies ahead of time so they are all ready to be sautéed in the order I need them.
Beans, Beans the Magical Fruit January 31, 2011
Posted by cirellih in Food.Tags: Black Beans, Carrots, Ham, Onion, Soup
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I made Black Bean Soup the first week of January, and have been enjoying it ever since! The perfect lunchtime fix, a delightful dinner on the go, its possibilities seemed never-ending! My soup bowl has overrun with goodness. My soup seemed to last forever, but today was the sad day that brought an end to the magical soup.
The Recipe:
- 1 lb. bag of dried black beans
- 8 cups of water
- 1 ham bone
- 1 cup chopped ham
- 2 cups of chicken stock
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 2 large carrots
- 1 can of diced tomatoes
- 1 tbsp cayenne powder
- Soak the black beans overnight, making sure that the water is at least a few inches over the beans to account for expansion.
- Add the 8 cups of water and the ham bone to the beans and bring to a boil.
- Once the water has boiled, add in the stock, tomatoes, onions, carrots and cayenne powder. Reduce to a simmer.
- Let cook for simmer for 1.5 hours. Add in the chopped ham.
- Cook for an additional 1/2 hour. Remove the ham bone.
- Serve with a splash of vinegar or dab of sour cream. Enjoy!
Soups are such a wonderful way to get a hearty meal with lots of vegetables involved. I’m sad to see the black bean soup go, but it is an exciting prospect to think of my next project! Maybe a chili, perhaps a broth soup with greens… there are so many possibilities!
Healthy Heath 