ginger quinoa, avocado, pistachio and ... grapefruit?!

another quinoa creation! this one takes a bit of an imagination to picture how these flavors and textures could possibly ever blend together... but they do! in the most delicious way possible too!

cooked red quinoa, chilled, and mixed with a citrus-ginger vinaigrette: equal parts olive oil and fresh grapefruit juice, a splash of apple cider vinegar, salt and pepper. grate a a couple tablespoons of fresh ginger and the zest of one grapefruit. marinate the quinoa overnight in the fridge for a bright spicy flavor. 

stir into your quinoa: finely slice up a few green onions, one jalapeno pepper, several handfuls of chopped cilantro, 1 or 2 avocados chopped, and 1 or 2 grapefruits chopped (peel and pith removed), topped with chopped pistachio nuts. serve chilled. 

thyme for a picnic

punny, i know... but i was rather amused while contemplating 

how much time i was spending de-stemming and cooking thyme

a lot of time and thyme

picnic menu: roasted carrots with thyme & fresh herb orzo pasta salad

for the carrot: i used sweet organic carrots for this recipe, sliced at an angle to get longer half inch thick slices. dress liberally with olive oil, salt and pepper, and a couple table spoons of fresh de-stemmed thyme leaves. roast in the oven at 425 for about 20 minutes. then, remove the carrots from the oven to drizzle balsamic vinegar over your carrots. enough to coat. return to oven and turn on your ovens broiler for about 5-10 minutes. stirring frequently until your carrots are lightly charred. once out of the oven, you can toss on more fresh thyme. these are wonderful warm, but i think i prefer them chilled. 

see on flickr

for the orzo: (similar to a recipe i posted months ago, but this version is vegan.) simply mix cooked orzo pasta with diced artichoke hearts, sun dried tomatoes, chopped green onion, bell peppers, tons of finely sliced fresh basil, more fresh thyme, olive oil, salt, pepper, and some chili flakes. 

see on flickr

fancy pasta salad, chilled grilled carrots, a blanket, and a sunny spot next to a lake made for a wonderful picnic dinner!

avocado pizza

you heard me... avocado on my pizza! why not?

 

yet another amazing pizza combo! this pie was topped with avocado, red bell peppers, red onion, goat cheese and (the secret ingredient that ties a pizza together with an avocado...) cilantro-lime pesto. i got this unique pesto from pcc natural markets, but you could make your own in a food processor: cilantro, oil, lime zest & juice, pine nuts, parmesan, salt and pepper. use the pesto as your base, layer on thinly slice onions and pepper, topped with crumbled goat cheese. bake for about 10 minutes at 500 degrees. remove the pizza to place you avocado slices on top, and then return to the oven for another 5-10 minutes until you crust in golden brown. delicious! 

*look back to my first pizza blog post for a whole wheat pizza dough recipe. 

early spring salad

sorry if you're getting tired of the recent slew of salad creations i've been posting... but hopefully you can never have too much salad! this was my vegan contribution to a rather traditional easter dinner with my lovely family:

i was walking through the farmers market, looking for inspiration to create a easter dinner salad and found red kale, carrots, and (something entirely new to me!) bok choy raab. these flowers look and taste like flowering broccoli, similar to broccoli raab, and add amazing color and texture to any salad. i also added in tons of dried currants, sunflower seeds, and pepitas (shelled pumpkin seeds). for the vinaigrette i combined balsamic and apple cider vinegars, olive oil, dried thyme and oregano, salt and pepper. (grandma just happened to have the perfect orange bowl that made the carrots in the salad pop and added bright contrast to the yellow raab flowers). happy veggie holidays!

chickpea nuts and salad

while traveling in turkey, allison and i kept a bag of chickpea nuts on us at all times. that and a bag of raisins. as vegetarians, we were extremely excited to find that dried fruit and nuts were everywhere in turkey... perfect for the budget backpackers! dried chickpea "nuts" have a great texture, and subtle flavor. they can either be left plain with salt, or spiced up!

spicy chickpea nuts:

you can either used canned chickpeas, or soak your own dried chickpeas. dry with a towel, and mix in whatever spices sound tasty to you... i used curry, cumin, paprika, coriander, salt and pepper. spread out on a baking sheet and bake at 350 for about an hour and a half. or use a dehydrator (8-12 hours). dehydrating the chickpeas will give you a much dryer "nut" that crumbles in your mouth (this is the more turkish style). baking them will give you a crisp, slightly chewy "nut." equally tasty! serve hot or room temp. 

for a cozy salad, i topped arugula with curried chickpea nuts and tons of avocado. dressed it with oil and vinegar, salt and pepper. topped with a couple edible bok choy raab flowers. great flavor combinations! 

quinoa salad

this ancient grain is high in protein, nutty in flavor, and serves as a great alternative to rice, pasta, or cous cous. it is cooked just like rice, but it can also be sprouted overnight to maintain its raw nutritional value. there are so many possibilities with quinoa (sweet, savory, warm, or cold...) here is just one excellent quinoa salad to start with:

cook quinoa either in a rice cooker or on the stove top (1:2, quinoa:water), until the quinoa sprouts and softens. 15-20 minutes. allow to cool, and refrigerate. in the mean time, finely chop red and green onions, cilantro, bell peppers, and chunks of avocado. mix vegetables into quinoa along with a handful of dried currants. dress with lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper. serve cold. 

simply arugula

the weather got warm in seattle, and i started craving fresh veggies. nothing original about this salad... just happens to be one of my all time favorites:

dress arugula with good quality olive oil and balsamic, salt and pepper. top with cherry tomatoes, lightly toasted pine nuts, and tons of shaved parmesan reggiano. (note: go for the real parmesan! alternatives just can't produce the same pop in salty flavor for this fresh salad) makes for a great side dish to pizza or pasta meals!

baked eggs

this dish requires some type of fancy little ramekin baking dish... i luckily found a pair at a rummage sale (i think there technically french onion soup ramekins), but this yummy breakfast creation makes filling up your cupboard space well worth it!

 

coat the insides of your ramekin dishes with a bit of olive oil or butter. at the bottom of the dish, spread out a couple slices of tomato and top with a small handful of arugula. crack eggs on top, making sure not to break the yoke (1-3 eggs depending on the size of the ramekin. you want the egg whites to spread out to the sides of your dish!) i made a herbed goat cheese mixture with rosemary and thyme and crumbled that on top of the eggs. salt and pepper! bake at 400 for about 10 minutes or until the whites are cooked, and yokes are still runny. 

olive focaccia bread was a great side to these savory baked eggs. 

*try different variations of baked eggs! anything can go at the bottom of your ramekin... 

1. sun dried tomatoes and artichoke hearts, topped with feta cheese

2. olives and green onion, topped with parmesan cheese

3. mushrooms, topped with chopped walnuts, parsley and goat cheese

spanish pisto and tortillitas

reading the new york times dinning section, i came across a recipe for spanish tortillitas with shrimp. inspired to create a veggie version, i made my flat breads with cured olives and roasted garlic. they made a great side to a tradition spanish soup called pisto manchego... a simple vegetable soup with poached eggs. 

pisto manchego:

sautee 1 onion with olive oil, adding in several crushed cloves of garlic and salt and pepper. chop up a couple pounds of zucchini (yellow or green or both), a couple bell peppers (any color) and stir into soup pot with tons of chopped tomatoes (or a 28oz can of tomatoes). cook at med-high for about 10 minutes, and then reduce to a simmer, adding water if needed, for another 10-20 minutes. after the vegetables are cooked tender, crack whole eggs on top of the soup, try to keep the yokes from breaking, and the whites apart from each other. the soup should be thick enough that they do not sink to the bottom. poach the eggs in the soup for about 8 minutes, covered at a low temperature. to serve the soup, spoon out some of the vegetables and broth, top with a poached egg, and sprinkle parsley on top!

garlic-olive tortillitas:

(this will make about 4 large flat breads)

1 cup chickpea flour 

1 cup white flour 

1 teaspoon baking powder

2 cups water

small diced red or green onions

cured, pitted olives - cut in half

garlic - roasted in the oven and cut into bits

small handful fresh parsley and chives

salt and pepper

mix everything together in a large bowl... should be a thin pancake batter consistency. heat a frying pan with a generous amount of olive oil. pour in a quarter of the batter, use a spoon to spread the batter out thin. fry on each side for about 3 minutes until browned. best served hot, so keep them warm in the oven until your soup is ready to be served!