nutritional yeast

fettuccine in black pepper chardonnay cashew nut sauce with asparagus, red bell pepper and spinach

by Heguiberto on January 17, 2012

black pepper fettuccine in chardonnay cashew nut sauce with asparagus, red bell pepper annd spinach

black pepper fettuccine in chardonnay cashew nut sauce with asparagus, red bell pepper and spinach

I spotted this recipe in the latest edition of Vegetarian Times magazine. The recipe is part of a funny article inviting loving couples to come spend their time and money at the Stanford Inn by the Sea for Valentine’s Day. The Inn’s renowned vegetarian restaurant, Raven’s, is run by Chefs Sally Owens and Merlyn Alvarado. I’ve checked both the hotel and restaurant (on-line) and they look sublime! These two local “celebrity” chefs have paired together to create vegetarian recipes with aphrodisiac properties just for the holiday. Everything uses locally and organically grown vegetables from Mendocino.

Among the several recipes, I was particularly excited by the creamy fettuccine with raw cashew nut sauce. It is completely vegan: no dairy at all! However, the name of the recipe in Vegetarian Times (“Black pepper fettuccine with chardonnay sauce and grilled asparagus”) omits the cashews, which is a major component here. I wonder why? We all know that black pepper for the most part comes from India and it’s been part of our culinary experience for so long that we don’t even think of it as a foreign ingredient. So why mention it and leave out the somewhat more exotic cashew? In Indian cooking cashew nuts have been used to thicken soups forever, or at least since the cashew plant made its journey from South America to India a few hundred years ago… And why praise the grilled asparagus over the more commonplace red bell pepper and humble baby spinach? Hmmm. Certainly it isn’t because the name becomes crazy long, as they’ve plenty of room for that in VT. So to prevent hard feelings among the lovely ingredients, I have renamed this dish accordingly. ;) lol

VT has adapted the recipe from the original and I have done the same, readapting it to my tastes. The proportion of each ingredient didn’t seem right to me so I modified them a bit. I have made dishes from VT in the past and have found that sometimes things are a bit off. I wonder if they have a test-kitchen? VT here’s a suggestion from me: test before you publish, like we do.

fettuccine in black pepper chardonnay cashew nut sauce with asparagus, red bell pepper and spinach

2 cups raw cashew nuts
2 cups chardonnay
2 tbsp nutritional yeast
Juice of a large lemon (~ 3 tbsp)
1 tbsp freshly ground black pepper
1 lb fettuccine cooked per package instructions
2 cups baby spinach
1 bunch asparagus bottom tips peeled
½ red bell pepper cut into fine strips
Kosher salt

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Pre-heat oven to 400F.

Add enough water to cashews to barely cover them in a small bowl. Microwave for about 2 minutes. Remove and let rest a bit. Transfer cashew nuts and water to food processor and whiz until nuts have turned into a smooth paste. Do not skip the microwaving part otherwise the paste will not become smooth and glossy.

Place the wine in a saucepan and bring to near boil, turn temperature to low and simmer for about 10 minutes. Add cashew nut paste, lemon juice, black pepper, kosher salt and whisk to combine, taste and adjust flavors. It should be creamy, tangy and a bit peppery. Add more warm water if too thick.

Place asparagus and red bell pepper on two different baking trays, sprinkle with a tiny amount of salt and black pepper and tiny drizzle of olive oil. Roast in the oven for about 8 minutes. Remove from oven and keep warm.

Meanwhile cook pasta following cooking instructions from package, put spinach leaves in toward the last 30 seconds. Drain.

Transfer pasta with spinach to a bowl. Toss with half of the sauce, scatter asparagus spears and red pepper slices over and serve.

{ 7 comments }

cuscuz paulista AKA savory Brazilian bundt cake

by Heguiberto on January 17, 2011

Cuscuz paulista is a very popular dish from the region in Brazil that I call home. The main ingredient for the recipe is farinha de milho, or “corn flour.” Farinha de milho is made of white or yellow corn that is finely ground, mixed with water and baked in the oven. This has nothing to do with American corn meal. The process precooks the ground corn, gives it a light toasty flavor, makes it ready to eat, and augments shelf storage. It is very versatile and can be used in sweet and savory dishes. You can find it in Brazilian and sometimes generic South American or Latino grocery stores. Early colonizers spread the taste for this corn product throughout the Brazilian Southeast, mainly in the states of São Paulo and Minas Gerais.

cuscuz paulista AKA savory Brazilian bundt cake

cuscuz paulista AKA savory Brazilian bundt cake

In São Paulo the most popular dish made with farinha de milho is cuscuz paulista. There are several versions. It can be entirely vegetarian or you can add shrimp, canned tuna, sardines, or if want to be fancy, crabmeat or even lobster. It is fairly low-fat, healthy and delicious!

I have been wanting to make this cuscuz for a while, but every time I suggested it, Steven would roll his eyes in disbelief, wondering if it would taste good. I think that he was afraid that it would be loaded with mayonnaise, like certain kinds of American deli salads. Poor thing: he detests mayo. He’s also suspicious of anything made of corn. Silly. When I finally prepared this for a dinner party, everybody loved it. I shaped it with a bundt pan. One of our friends, Juanita, called this dish a “savory Brazilian bundt cake.” So there you go.

Here’s another version, and another.

cuscuz paulista AKA savory Brazilian bundt cake

3 cups farinha de milho
2 cups vegetable broth
6 tbsp olive oil plus more for finishing
1 cup tomato sauce (make your own* or pre-made would work)
1 white onion, chopped fine
1 cup fresh or fresh frozen peas
1 cup fresh or frozen sweet corn
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 green bell pepper, cubed
3 tbsp nutritional yeast
4 scallions, white and green parts, chopped
½ bunch Italian parsley, chopped
1 can Brazilian palm hearts, drained, all but four cut in rounds
¼lb fresh shrimp chopped (optional)
1 cube vegetable bullion (optional)
kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper
crushed red pepper

*For tomato sauce:

1 can crushed tomato plus juice (28oz/800grams)
2 cups water
1 heaping tbsp tomato paste
1 white onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
4 tbsp olive oil
1 red Jalapeño pepper, seeds and ribs removed, minced
2 fillets of anchovies packed in oil (optional for vegetarian version)
crushed red pepper
kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper
pinch of fennel seeds

For decoration:

4 cherry tomatoes halved
2 parsley sprigs
4 sticks palm hearts (reserved from above) cut two in quarters along the long axis to make sticks and two into about four rounds each

Yoki Farinha de Milho aka Brazilian Yellow Corn Flakes

Yoki Farinha de Milho aka Brazilian Yellow Corn Flakes

To make tomato sauce:

Using a stockpot, sauté onion in olive oil until translucent. Add garlic, Jalapeño and anchovy fillets. Continue sautéing until aromatic. Add rest of ingredients and bring it to a boil. Reduce temperature to low and simmer for about 30-45 minutes stirring a few times to prevent sticking. Add more water if needed. The tomato sauce should be thick when finished. Reserve left over sauce for another use.

To prepare cuscuz:

Sweat onion in 3 tablespoons olive oil on high heat. Next add garlic, salt, red and black pepper followed by peas and corn. Push partially cooked veggies to side and continue by adding bell pepper, shrimp (if using), the remainder of the olive oil, scallion, parsley, palm heart and bullion until everything is cooked but not overcooked. Next add tomato sauce and hot vegetable broth. Bring to a boil and immediately turn temperature to low. Lastly mix farinha de milho and nutritional yeast together and pour them into the pan, folding delicately to incorporate without breaking the veggies. It will have a mushy consistency. Continue cooking another minute until mix begins to stick to the bottom of the pan. Remove from heat.

To mold the cuscuz, oil a bundt dish (or any medium sized bowl with an interesting shape though the bundt is traditional) with olive oil. Lay parsley springs, tomato halves and palm heart rounds at the bottom of the pan. Stack pieces of palm heart sticks on the sides. Carefully transfer cuscuz to bundt pan to avoid moving decorative vegetables. Gently press with a spatula. Drizzle with some olive oil. Let it rest for about 5 minutes. Place a serving platter over pan, and, holding it tightly, flip the finished cuscuz onto dish. Tap at the bottom to dislodge. And voilá!

{ 1 comment }

baked Portobello mushrooms stuffed with mushroom oat tomato filling with walnuts, Fontina and parmesan

by Heguiberto on November 5, 2010

Like mushroom and pink bean loaf, this recipe also comes from The Best – Ever Vegetarian Cookbook by Nicola Graimes. The picture in the book looked as appetizing as the mushroom loaf, so I decided to give it a try as well.

baked Portobello mushrooms stuffed with mushroom oat tomato filling with walnuts, Fontina and parmesan

baked Portobello mushrooms stuffed with mushroom oat tomato filling with walnuts, Fontina and parmesan

Lately, Steven’s been kind of complaining we don’t eat enough mushrooms, especially, he says, because they go really well with the heartier red wines that we enjoy drinking. I thought this recipe was a perfect opportunity to bring mushrooms back to the table. Plus the day that I prepared these, it was cold and a bit cloudy, making the idea of baking, warming up the apartment and filling the air with earthy aromas very enticing.

Maybe he’s right in a sense. I searched all the recipes on weirdcombinations and could come up with a large handful containing mushrooms as an ingredient. Some of my favorite are: poached king salmon spicy Thai tom-yum, fresh corn tamales stuffed with shitake and brie, and linguine with harissa, chick pea and mushroom. Since we make these often, I don’t ever feel that mushroom-deprived. Perhaps S is exaggerating? Or maybe this is another case of making the mushroom the center of attention rather than in a supporting role? Oh well, different strokes.

I served these baked stuffed Portobellos at a small dinner party. Among all the dishes our friend John said he thought this one was best. Thanks Nicola.

Here is my adaptation:

baked Portobello mushrooms stuffed with mushroom oat tomato filling with walnuts, Fontina and parmesan ready for the oven

baked Portobello mushrooms stuffed with mushroom oat tomato filling with walnuts, Fontina and parmesan ready for the oven

baked Portobello mushrooms stuffed with mushroom oat tomato filling with walnuts, Fontina and parmesan

6 Portobello mushrooms, cleaned, caps reserved whole; bases removed and chopped into cubes
½ lb white mushrooms, chopped fine
1 medium white onion, chopped fine
3 garlic cloves, minced
½ cup rolled oats
¾ tsp hot garlic pepper sauce
28oz can chopped tomatoes
½ cup broken walnut pieces
Kosher salt
freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup cubed Fontina cheese
¼ cup fresh parmesan slivers
1 tbsp olive oil

Pre heat oven to 375F. Grease a baking tray with olive oil and set aside.

Sauté onion in olive oil until translucent. Add garlic followed by chopped mushroom, salt and pepper and sauté until soft. Add canned tomato and cook for about 8 minutes. Add oats and turn off heat. The stuffing will become thick as the oats absorb the liquid.

Lay Portobello caps upside down on baking tray. Fill each cup with tomato stuffing. Top with walnuts, a sprinkle of salt and pepper plus cheeses. Bake for 25 minutes. Remove from oven and serve!

{ 1 comment }

vegetarian paratha or maybe paratha veggie burgers?

by Heguiberto on August 20, 2010

vegetarian paratha or maybe paratha veggie burgers

I absolutely love Indian cuisine and never got around making my own paratha. Paratha is just a pan-fried unleavened flat bread originally from the Punjab region that is popular all over India nowadays. This recipe was adapted from Prerna’s beautiful blog. Her parathas looked so tempting that I had to try them at home. I always have this phobia about making bread even when the dough does not require rising. I’m glad I finally made this one. They are supposed to be flat, but mine turned out kind of thick; sort of like a veggie burger. Scrumptious!

vegetarian paratha

1 bunch of organic spinach rinsed, dried and thinly chiffonaded
1 cup carrots, shredded
3 tbsp nutritional yeast
3 tbsp fat free cottage cheese
1 medium just harvested white onion cut into small cubes
3 small potatoes boiled and roughly mashed
1 clove garlic, mashed
1 inch piece of fresh ginger, grated
1 Serrano pepper cut into thin disks
5 long beans chopped fine, steamed for 3 minutes
1 tsp fennel seeds
1 tsp ajwain seeds
1½ cups flour
1 cup cream of wheat
Fresh black pepper
Kosher salt
Olive oil

vegetarian paratha is rich in wholesome fresh vegetables

the cream of wheat box is sooooo old-fashioned looking!

Mix spinach, carrots, cottage cheese, onion, ginger, garlic, salt, fennel, Serrano and black pepper together. Add dry ingredients and mix until incorporated. No other fluid is required as the vegetables will release liquid.

Grease your hands with a bit of olive oil. Grab enough dough to make a ping-pong size ball in your hands. Flatten the dough into thin discs. Place a bit of oil in a non stick skillet, bring temperature to medium and fry parathas about 6-8 minutes flipping half way through. The parathas will turn a bit brown on the surface. Watch out for hot temperature as it may burn the outside and leave the inside uncooked. It is super fun to make this bread, sort of like cooking pancakes.

Serve as a side with rasam, dal or with tamarind, mint and cilantro salsa. Enjoy them on their own as well. These are good!

vegetarian paratha dough is messy fun

{ 6 comments }

vegan aloo mutter with okra and edamame

by Heguiberto on April 30, 2010

vegan aloo mutter with okra and edamame

Aloo mutter is another dish I like for lunch at Rotee Express on Howard and Spear. I like Rotee Express though invariably, they always serve their food cold. Apparently, due to a lack of space in the tiny restaurant, the food is made at their main location and then shipped over.

They’re the inspiration for this dish, though I’ve no idea of their recipe and, of course, I served mine warm. It does require a fair number of various spices, which is exciting. I love to try different spice blends and I’m slowly getting a handle on Indian cooking. Cooking Indian still feels like a lab experiment but one that’s becoming more familiar with practice. So don’t be put off by the ingredient list on this one. It’s really good and good for you, too. And you can show off to your friends and loved ones when you present a homemade Indian masterpiece.

I love experimenting with new spices, like amchoor powder

Vegan Aloo Mutter with Okra and Edamame

1 lb medium sized potatoes, skin on, quartered
1 cup fresh shelled frozen edamame
1 cup fresh frozen okra
3 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 jalapeño pepper, seeds and ribs discarded then minced
1 large onion, run through food processor
¾ tbsp ground fresh ginger
1 tsp mashed garlic
2 ripe Roma tomatoes, run through food processor
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground cumin
½ tsp turmeric
1 tsp amchoor powder (green mango powder)
1/8 tsp ground chili pepper
1 cup water
1 tbsp nutritional yeast
1 tbsp cashew nut butter
Kosher salt

Garnish:

cilantro leaves, fresh onion and wedges of lemon or lime.

...and cumin seeds

Place olive oil in pressure cooker (If you don’t have one, use a regular deep pan. You’ll just have to cook it longer.) Add cumin seeds and cook until aromatic and slightly browned, about a minute or so. Add jalapeño, followed by processed onion. Sauté until onion becomes translucent. Add garlic and ginger. Continue sautéing for a couple of minutes more, stirring constantly. Fold in ground cumin, turmeric, chili pepper, coriander and amchoor powder. Stir in tomatoes. Cook for 4 minutes. Add potatoes and water. Seal the pressure cooker and cook on high for 3-4 minutes after valve starts whistling. Shake the pan a few times to prevent sticking. Remove from heat. Run some cold water over sealed pan to cool it and release pressure so it will open.

Stir in edamane, okra and cashew nut butter. Return to heat for another minute until edamane becomes softer. Add nutritional yeast and stir again. Remove from heat then let cool down for 5-10 min and serve! This dish, like a lot of Indian food, seems to taste even better the next day, after it’s been sitting around for a while.

I garnished the aloo mutter with fresh cilantro leaves, fresh sliced onion and lime wedges. It went really well with with carrot cumin basmati rice. We drank a bottle of a scrumptious white Côtes Du Rhône, the 2008 Domaine de la Becassonne,which matched perfectly.

{ 2 comments }

homemade vegetarian quibe AKA khichcar

by Heguiberto on April 12, 2010

Last month we received a beautiful and rare cookbook, The Rural Taste of Lebanon by Chérine Yazbeck, as a gift from our blogger friend, Joumana Accad, from Taste of Beirut. Joumana, thanks again for this exciting gift! The author, Yazbeck, focuses on traditional and less well-known foods from the Lebanese countryside. She seems bowled over by the richness of the food and culture. We were too. The photos are stunning and now we’d love to visit ourselves. Perhaps, one day when you’re in Beirut, Joumana, we can meet you for dinner?

homemade vegetarian quibe AKA khichcar

The Rural Taste of Lebanon has so many recipes that it’s hard to decide which ones to try first. We’re fans of bulgur and recently enjoyed making Joumana’s eggplant bulgur casserole. Brazil, my homeland, has strong Lebanese influences in food. Quibe, the Portuguese spelling for kebbeh, is very popular there. According to the book, khichcar is the name for the vegetarian kebbeh. Quibe arrived in Brazil in the late XIX century with the migration of Lebanese, Syrian and Iraqi folk and became a sensation. You can even get it at an Arabic fast food chain, Habib’s, found in almost every shopping center throughout the country. Try Habib’s food when you visit Brazil.

Usually it’s made with ground beef in Brazil, though we had a marvelous vegetarian version while sipping red wine in Vitória. Vegetarian or not, quibe always has bulgur and spices. Sometimes it comes deep fried, but it can also be baked or even eaten raw. It can be stuffed with meat, dried mint, cheese, potato and other things. When deep fried, the quibe mix is shaped into small elliptical balls (just like an American football) and fried in hot oil. If you wish less fat, then I suggest that you bake it.

Hegui savoring The Rural Taste of Lebanon

I’ve adapted this recipe from The Rural Taste of Lebanon using ingredients I had handy. The original called for oatmeal and chickpea flour as well as coarse semolina (smid). I didn’t have them. So I sort of improvised with tomato, soy protein and nutritional yeast (strange to have that stuff at home and not oatmeal). It turned out delicious anyway. I didn’t stuff this with anything but it didn’t need it either.

Homemade Vegetarian Quibe AKA Khichcar

1 cup fine bulgur
1 cup TVP (soy protein)
2½ tbsp flour
2 tomatoes
1 egg
1 egg white
1 cup packed fresh mint leaves
1 large onion
Salt
Black pepper
Dash of cinnamon
Crushed red pepper
Olive oil
2 tbsp nutritional yeast
2 tbsp mixed dry herbs: I used a bit of savory, oregano, thyme, paprika, cumin, coriander, cloves, mint, parsley and sumac

How to:

Soak TVP and bulgur separately, each in two cups of warm water for approximately 15 minutes. Drain separately. Cover the bottom of a colander with a clean dishtowel. Place drained bulgur in towel then lift and twist it closed to make a sack. Squeeze it to release as much residual water as possible. Set aside. Repeat the same drying process with the TVP. Mix bulgur and TVP with a fork. Set aside.

Pre-heat the oven to 375F.

Meanwhile place tomatoes, fresh mint, onion, salt, black and crushed red pepper in food processor, then pulse until blended. Add dry herbs, nutritional yeast, flour and pulse again to incorporate. Mix with the bulgur and TVP blend. Adjust flavor with more salt or pepper. Whisk egg and egg white together then fold into bulgur mixture.

Grease a large glass (9×13 inches) baking dish with olive oil. Spread kibe mixture with a rubber spatula evenly over dish. Drizzle with olive oil and bake for about 50 minutes. Increase temperature to 400F towards the last 5-10minutes to brown the top. Remove from oven and cool completely. Cut into squares or lozenges.

Serve with fresh mint leaves, wedges of lime and a generous drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.

{ 2 comments }

vegetarian kimchi fried rice

by Heguiberto on October 20, 2009

With all of this kimchi that I made last week, it’s like we’ve been running the kimchi marathon, sort of like the spinach version from the spring. Maybe I should really say the kimchi Olympics to show my Brazilian pride. Yeah Rio de Janeiro 2016!

kimchi fried rice with optional fried egg

kimchi fried rice with optional fried egg

Besides the regular baechu kimchi, we made a wonderful silken tofu kimchi stiry fry and now this classic—sort of—kimchi fried rice dish. Even after these three, we’ve got about two pints of kimchi left, so who knows what that will be next? I hear that kimchi ripens as it ages. Apparently it’s the younger ones that are best from the jar and it’s recommended that you cook with the more aged ones, as the flavor tends to get more and more intense. My kimchi is now on its 15th day. I had a big sample of it yesterday while making the fried rice. And no, I am still alive and in good health for all you kimchi naysayers out there in the blog-iverse. I think that the ginger and garlic are most accentuated now while the heat from the chili peppers is fading. So next time, I’ll add more chili and less ginger and garlic. Live and learn. And as Julia Child famously said about cooking, ‘never apologize!” The cabbage is still crunchy and bubbly. I’m quite pleased with it myself. Yum! Maybe I will try making some kimchi soup with the cold fall weather on its way…

This recipe is “almost vegan” because I decided to add a fried egg on top for some extra protein, plus I was just feeling like having a fried egg. The egg is obviously optional, so leave it out if you have health concerns or don’t particularly like fried eggs. For more protein you can add some garden peas or even fresh fava beans for an East meets West version.

homemade kimchi

homemade kimchi

I love rice in almost any form and this dish is no exception. The kimchi rice tasted simply divine and went well with the mushroom tofu that Steven made to accompany it. The toasted sesame oil adds some earthiness and smokiness to make it incredibly good!

Vegetarian Kimchi Fried Rice

2 cups Thai Jasmine rice
¾ cup chopped kimchi with some of the juices
1 shallot chopped fine
1 & ½ cup broccoli florets and stems chopped same size and blanched
1 to 2 tbsp low sodium soy sauce
3 tbsp canola oil
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp nutritional yeast
¼ tsp chili powder (I used Cayenne)
Pinch of salt
Fresh black pepper to taste
Egg (optional)

How to:

To prepare rice:

Rinse rice in running water for about a minute. Add to a medium sized pot with add 1 & ¾ cup of water and cover. Bring to boil then lower to simmer and cook rice till water is fully absorbed, about 15 minutes. Stir a couple of times during the cooking process to prevent sticking. Remove from heat and leave covered for about 5 minutes to rest.

Add oil to a wok or in my case a non-stick paella pan over high heat. Add shallot and sauté for a minute or so till translucent. Add rice and broccoli, soy sauce, sugar, nutritional yeast, black pepper, salt and cayenne, and keep stirring. Add chopped Kimchi. Allow the rice mixture to warm through. Remove from heat and transfer to a serving platter. To fry the egg(s), use a non stick pan, add a dash of oil, break egg over it and cook on low temp for a couple of minutes. Remove and place it over rice.

{ 1 comment }

quinoa love

by Heguiberto on July 25, 2009

it's always a party with quinoa love!

it's always a party with quinoa love!

This is the best time of the year for locally grown produce: Summer! Last Sunday we went to the farmers market at the UN plaza and found beautiful vegetables on sale for cheap! In fact vegetables are always cheap at this market. Many times they are organically grown or at least grown free of pesticides which is a good thing. This week the organically grown collard greens were on sale: 3 large bunches for only 2 bucks. The dry farmed cherry tomatoes were just a dollar a pound. You really can’t beat that anywhere else in San Francisco. Dry framed tomatoes may not be the cutest but I think that they’re especially flavorful due to the stress the plant goes through receiving only rain water. Don’t be afraid of vegetables that don’t appear classically shaped or colored. In the case of tomatoes, for example, the oddly shaped and colored ones tend to be more packed with flavor that the more conventional round, plump red ones. I almost wonder why they still even produce the flavorless tennis-ball varieties anymore.

fresh collard greens from the farmers market

fresh collard greens from the farmers market

The same day that we went to the farmer’s market we were also invited to our friend, John’s house for dinner, sort of last minute. I was already preparing Quinoa Love, so we offered to bring it over. Amazingly, John was thinking of making the same dish himself that very night! It was kismet, no?

How could we decline having a meal with friends? The food always tastes even better and more company makes the conversation more lively. Plus Clarence, our bulldog, was invited. He really enjoys visiting John’s. So it was a win-win situation all around.

This recipe is simple though it requires several steps to make. It is a complete meal packing everything you need including lots of protein coming from the tofu and quinoa. The meal is ultra healthy and light and tasty. This is not one of those old-fashioned hippie vegetarian recipes with no flavor that makes you run to the loo the whole next day, so don’t worry! It has tons of flavor, interesting textures and is a real crowd pleaser every time. I’ve served this to people who’ve never had quinoa and to regular meat eaters and never had any complaints. Actually they ask for more most of the time.

A note on quinoa, I thought that quinoa was a cereal much like rice or corn, but I was wrong about that. It’s what they call a “pseudo-cereal.” Apparently it’s related to beets and spinach. Even so, you can cook quinoa much the same way you would when making rice. In the taste department I would say it is nutty and smells a bit like oatmeal. Quinoa is another exquisite and nutritious contribution from the Americas to world cuisine.

Quinoa Love

TJ's quinoa

TJ's quinoa

Here’s the recipe:

1 cup of dry quinoa, rinsed
1 bunch of collard greens, rinsed, stems* removed with leaves cut in thin strips 2-3 inches long
1 ½ lbs. cherry tomatoes
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 tsp sugar
5 ears of fresh sweet corn
½ bunch of Italian parsley chopped
1 block of tofu cut into 5 squares
Pinch cayenne pepper
1 tbsp nutritional yeast
1 tsp of balsamic vinegar
½ cup pesto American Style
½ jar of sundried tomatoes packed in oil, cut into strips
4 cloves of garlic
Kosher salt
Fresh black pepper
¾ cup pumpkin seeds

*Collard green stems tastes like broccoli, don’t discard them just steam them and add to salads, soup, rice, etc

How to:

Cut tomatoes in halves. Toss with sugar, olive oil, salt and black pepper. Place tomato halves on a cooking pan cut side up and bake it in the oven for about 50 minutes at approximately 380F.

Add quinoa to a pan with 2 cups of water and salt, heat to boiling then turn temperature to low. Simmer covered for 15 to 18 minutes. Remove from heat. Let rest for 5 min.

chopping collard greens

chopping collard greens

Lay tofu squares on a dish, sprinkle salt, black pepper, cayenne and nutritional yeast over it on both sides. Add 2 tbsp olive oil to a pan and sauté tofu squares about 5 min per side. Sprinkle balsamic vinegar over them. Remove from pan and set aside. Using the same pan, add two tbsp of olive oil and 2 crushed garlic cloves. Sauté till fragrant. Add collard greens. Toss to coat with olive oil. Sauté for about 5 minutes until collard greens have wilted to about half of the original volume and the color is bright green. Remove from pan and set aside. Using the same pan, heat 4 tbsp olive oil and the remaining garlic. Sauté till fragrant then add corn, salt, black pepper and cayenne pepper. Cook corn for about 5 minutes while occasionally stirring. Add parsley to corn about half way through cooking. Remove from pan and set aside.

To assemble the dish mix the quinoa, corn, collard greens, pumpkin seeds, sundried tomatoes together in a large bowl. Stir in pesto. Place mix in a large serving dish. Cut tofu squares diagonally into triangles and lay them on top of the quinoa mix. Top with baked tomatoes, along with their juices. This dish makes about ten to twelve servings. It tastes great the next day too.

Related Posts with Thumbnails

{ 4 comments }