Lunch "Bowl" and Update on my Vacation

A few days ago, I made a "bowl" for lunch, inspired by Veggiegirl's bowl-meals. It had quinoa cooked with onions, garlic, cumin, italian seasoning, tomato paste and a little bit of pinto beans and topped with steamed brocoli and kale, raw carrots, and grilled eggplant. I didn't actually make the eggplant from scratch. At HEB they sell frozen grilled eggplant, so I heated some of that up in the toaster oven.


I liked the "bowl," but it it took longer to make than I expected, and I nearly burned the quinoa because my b(r)other wouldn't leave me alone and I was trying to make a one-serving portion of it. There was a layer of quinoa stuck on the bottom, just barely starting to burn, but the rest was fine.

I have a update on my California trip: we postponed it until spring break in March. The reason we wanted to go in January in the first place was that we got great deals on the plane tickets ($99/person each way!) and it wasn't available during spring break when we bought the tickets. But then my dad thought it might not be a good idea to go now because there are some pretty bad storms in California right now. So then we looked and saw that they now have tickets available for the same price during spring break, so we changed our tickets. And we can go for a few extra days now, since it will be during spring break.

So now what are we doing over the 5 day weekend coming up? We are going to stay in the HEB cabins in Rockport! It's free since my dad works at HEB.

Quinoa and Wild Rice, Black Beans and Rice

A few nights ago, I made Simple Quinoa and Wild Rice Pilaf from The Vegetarian Family Cookbook. However, I made quite a few adjustments. I omitted the bouillion cube, margarine and scallions and instead added a chopped zucchini, a can of pinto beans that needed to be used up, and some cumin(one of my favorite spices), dried rosemary and thyme. Very simple, yet delicious.

Then, I made a Black Beans and Rice recipe I invented. I was great! Here it is topped with some storebought salsa.



And here is the recipe:

Cherry's Black Beans and Rice

Ingredients:

2 cups dry black beans
1 strip kombu
enough water to cook black beans

1 cup long grain brown rice
2 zucchini, chopped
1 ear corn, cut of the cob
2 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. oregano
1 tsp. chipotle powder
1/2 tsp. paprika

Soak the black beans overnight. Then, in the morning, place the water, black beans and kombu in a crockpot and cook on high for 2 hours. Then, turn to low and continue cooking until the beans are done and the kombu has disintegrated. Or, you can cook it on low all day if you're not going to be home to watch it.

Drain the water from the beans into a glass measuring cup and set the beans in a bowl. Add enough water to the drained bean liquid to make 2.5 cups of liquid. Pour this into a pot, add rice, bring to a boil, and cook for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, chop the zucchini and cut the corn off the cob. After the rice has cooked for 15 minutes, add the corn, zucchini and seasonings and continue cooking until rice is done, about 15-30 minutes, stirring occasionally. When rice is done, add the beans, mix well, and cook for 5 more minutes.

Quick and Spicy Quinoa and Black Beans

I enjoyed my ice day today. There was a little snow, so I gathered all the snow on my porch and sidewalk and tried to make a snowman with it, but it wouldn't stick together! I guess it wasn't powdery enough. There will probably be school tomorrow, though. I am dreading having to go back to school, but if we don't go tomorrow, we will have to make it up after the last day of school in May.

Tonight I made the recipe pictured above- without following someone else's recipe like I usually do. It was excellent. I could have been a little hotter, but I had to go easy on the spices because my mom is a spice wimp. The jalapeno peppers really added a nice flavor to it. Also, it's very quick and easy, great for when you need to get dinner ready quick!

Quick and Spicy Quinoa and Black Beans

Ingredients:

1 medium onion, chopped
half of a medium red pepper, diced
1 jalapeno pepper, diced very small
3 cloves garlic
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. cumin
.5 tsp. coriander
.5 tsp. paprika
1 TB salt-free tomato paste
1 cup uncooked quinoa
2 cups water
2 cups cooked black beans
chipotle powder, to taste

Put a little water in a pot so the bottom is just barely covered. Add onion, jalapeno, garlic and spices and saute until onions are soft, then add the red peppers and saute for a few more minutes. Then, add water, quinoa and tomato paste and cook covered for 15 minutes. Then, add black beans and cook uncovered until most of the liquid evaporates, leaving and thick, stick mass, about 10 minutes. Sprinkle on desired amount of chipotle powder and serve.