MUSHROOM QUINOA

The first time I bought quinoa, I cooked it without any seasonings. I tasted it, shrugged my shoulders and then put it back in the pantry. This COULDN'T be the same quinoa that people were raving about could it?

What I found out (much later) was that you have to add stuff (veggies, spices, etc.) to the quinoa and then something magical happens. Quinoa takes on the persona of whatever you cook it with......want beefy? cook it in beef broth, want it spicy? cook it with Rotel tomatoes. You can't goof it up, like I said it's almost magical.

So, lately, I've been experimenting with more quinoa recipes and I have created this new one that I really enjoy.  I hope you do too!!

MUSHROOM QUINOA
3/4 cup chopped onion
6 large mushrooms
1 large carrot
1 cup peas
1 cup quinoa (rinsed and drained)
2 cups beef broth (I like canned beef consume)
2 teaspoons beef bullion (or 2 cubes)
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne

Prep work: Remove stems from mushrooms and put them in the food processor along with the carrot. Pulse them until they are about the size of a pea. Next hand slice the mushrooms fairly thickly and set aside. Note: add as many of your favorite veggies as you want.

Saute onions then scoot them over to edge of pan. Add the mushrooms and sauté them (in the onion pan) until you get some toasty brown color on the edges.

Put EVERYTHING into the pan and bring to a boil; reduce heat and put a lid on it. Use the same "simmer speed" and cooking time that you would use for rice (about 15-20 minutes) A better description would be, if your simmer is fast.....cook for 15 minutes, if you have it turned down pretty low, cook for 20 minutes. That's it!!  Just fluff it with a fork and eat!!

Depending on how many veggies you pack into this recipe (there is no limit), you should get 5 or 6 cups in the final dish. I freeze it in one cup measures. No need to defrost, just microwave uncovered for 2 minutes. It makes a great (and filling) lunch, with no guilt !!

 

ENJOY !!

 

Quinoa is known as a super food for many reasons. The description of most of those reasons are words that I don't use every day, like flavonoids, phylonutrients, antioxidants, etc.

 

For me, my reasons for enjoying quinoa are: it's quick and easy to prepare, it will take on any seasonings you like and most of all, I can eat a big bowl of this and it doesn't effect my blood sugars very much at all, plus it's gluten free!! I hope you try it.

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