Monday, February 4, 2013

quinoa is good for the soul

hey there ducklings!  this one will be just a quick post with a recipe.  folks were clamoring for this, so here it is:  quinoa with broccoli, sausage, and feta cheese.  (I have to admit that I can't take credit for this recipe in it's entirety.  my D&D pal made something similar the other night, and i liked it and thought that i could make it even better, so i tried.  he takes the credit for the inspiration, and i'll take the credit for adding the lemon and feta.  i think that's fair.  i also think that in a pinch, you could use brown rice, or leftover white rice, or couscous if you can have gluten in this, and it would be just as good.)

RECIPE!!

1 pound chicken sausage links (I got the feta and spinach links that are available at my local health food store.  i know whole foods has em too.  you should get these.. they're amazing, and when you cook them up are more like meatballs than sausage), sliced

1/2 white onion, diced

1-2 cups quinoa (depends on how starchy you want it)

2-4 cups chicken broth

2 heads broccoli, chopped, or a bag of florets

juice and zest of one lemon

feta cheese crumbles

salt and pepper

Prepare your quinoa as instructed, using the chicken broth as the liquid.  i cheat and cook it in my rice cooker.  my rice cooker also doubles as a steamer, so i make the broccoli while the grain is cooking, but you can throw it in the cooker if you don't mind mushy, or steam it or microwave it as you see fit to get it cooked the way you want it.  while that's cooking, sautee the sausage and onions in olive oil.  i put the sausage in first to get a bit of a sear on it, and so that it would stay together.  once you put the onions in, turn the heat down a bit and let them cook slowly.  you want them to really get sweet and soft, so it's worth the wait.  plus, you have to wait for the quinoa to finish cooking.  once that's done, throw it and the broccoli in with the sausage and onions.  zest up the lemon, and add it and the juice to the party.  heat til all the way warm, which should only take a minute.  then throw on the feta cheese and serve.  i didn't salt this at all, but if that's what you feel it needs, season to taste. 

there ya go!  healthy, easy quick weeknight dinner full of protein and veggies, and completely gluten free.  and very versatile!  mix it up and add different veggies, meats, cheeses.... endless possibilities.

1 comment:

  1. Hi I'm coming over from crazyauntpurl, because not many people go back to read the comments again... and I do have a cake mix that I liked. Your mileage may vary of course, but here's what I posted at CAP:

    I spent 12 months GF for probable (but not) celiac. This cake mix actually satisfied the kids who came to my daughter's 5th birthday party!
    http://www.bobsredmill.com/gluten-free-vanilla-cake-mix.html
    We used lots of canned vanilla icing that we died pink & green. With piped fireworks.

    The site is selling 5-pound bags, so it seems pricier than it is.

    ReplyDelete