Spinach-Quinoa Salad with Cherries and Almonds

Recipe from the Vegetarian Times Magazine

INGREDIENTS

1. 1/4 cup sliced almonds
2. 1 1/2 cups quinoa, rinsed and drained
3. 2 cups spinach leaves
4. 1 cup dried cherries
5. 1 cucumber, peeled, seeded and cut into 1/3" dice (about 1 1/2 cups)
6. 1 15oz. can of chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1. 1 small red onion, finely chopped (about 1/2 cup)
2. 1/4 cup plain nonfat yogurt
3. 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
4. 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
5. 2 garlic cloves, minced
6. Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper


DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350F. Spread almonds on baking sheet, and toast 7 to 10 minutes, shaking pan occasionally, or until golden brown. Cool.
2. Bring 3 cups salted water to a boil in pot over medium-high heat. Stir in quinoa. Reduce heat to medium low, cover, and simmer 15 minutes, or until all liquid has been absorbed.
3. Remove from heat and cool, covered, in pot.
4. Lay 5 or 6 spinach leaves flat on top of one another on cutting board. Roll tightly into cylinder, then slice into slivers. Repeat with remaining spinach.
5. Toss together quinoa, almonds, spinach, cherries, cucumber, chickpeas and red onion in large serving bowl. Whisk together yogurt, olive oil, lemon juice and garlic in small bowl. Pour over salad, and toss to coat. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Chill 30 minutes to allow flavors to develop, then serve.

Pork Souvlaki

Recipe from Food & Wine Magazine

Souvlaki is a Greek dish usually made with lamb or pork. The meat is marinated, skewered and then grilled. In this dish, pork shoulder is used because it is tender and instead of skewering the meat it is cooked in a grill pan along with onions.

Serve this with a size of tzatziki & pita bread.

INGREDIENTS

1. 1 1/4 pounds trimmed pork shoulder, cut into 3-by- 1/2-inch strips
2. 1 large onion, cut through the root end into 1/2-inch wedges
3. 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
4. 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, plus lemon wedges for serving
5. 2 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano
6. 2 garlic cloves, mashed to a paste
7. Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

DIRECTIONS

1. In a medium bowl, toss the pork strips and onion wedges with the olive oil, lemon juice, chopped oregano and half of the garlic paste. Season with 1 1/2 teaspoons of salt and 1/2 teaspoon of pepper and let stand for 20 minutes.

2. Heat a large cast-iron griddle or grill pan until very hot. Add the pork and onion wedges along with any marinade and cook over high heat, turning once or twice, until the pork and onion are tender, about 10 minutes. Transfer the pork and onion to plates and serve with the tzatziki, lemon wedges and pita.

   
   
   
   

Vegetarian "Chicken" and Dumplings

The weather has been cold, and rainy the past few days so comfort food was in order. I've made this recipe in the past omitting the chicken part altogether, which also came out nicely. This time I decided to add in Quorn chicken cutlets, which are mostly made from wheat protein.

I adapted this recipe from Tyler Florence.

Soup Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 tablespoon oil (I used canola oil)
• 1/4 cup flour (I used whole wheat flour)
• 1 cup of sliced carrots
• 1 cup of sliced celery
• 1 small onion, diced
• 1/2 cup frozen peas
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, chopped
• 6 cups of vegetable stock
• 1/3 cup half and half (I used fat free)
• 3 Quorn Chicken Cutlets
• salt, and fresh ground black pepper, to taste

Dumpling Ingredients:

• 2 cups flour (I used whole wheat)
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup of buttermilk (I used lowfat buttermilk)

In a dutch oven, melt the butter and heat the oil over medium heat. Add the carrot, celery, onion, garlic, bay leaves and rosemary. Saute until the vegetables are soft, about 10 minutes. Stir in the flour to make a roux. Continue to stir and cook about 2 minutes, to remove the starchy flavor from the flour. Slowly pour in the stock, about 1 cup at a time, stirring well after each addition.

Let the soup simmer until it is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, about 15 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and stir in the half and half.

Add in the chicken cutlets, which can either be thawed and diced ahead of time, or you can add them in and break them up once they've cooked for a while in the soup. Next add in the frozen peas.

Using 2 spoons, carefully drop in heaping tablespoonfuls of the dumpling batter into the hot mixture. The dumplings should cover the top of the soup, but not be overcrowded. Let the dumplings poach about 10 to 15 minutes until they're firm and puffy.