Quinoa

Quinoa, originally uploaded by michele wynne.

I had this paltry remnant of quinoa lingering in my pantry from a previous Rainbow bulk binge. It would still be there if I hadn't opened up my goop newsletter today. GP has a lot of good rice bowl concoctions in which she combines brown rice with quinoa and then tosses in or tops it with any number vegetables and what-not. Somehow I bounced myself around the blogosphere and ended up jotting down the steps for "How to Make Quinoa Without a Recipe" from a source I forgot to note. I thought it was Food52 but I couldn't find it anywhere.

It goes something like this:

First and super important: RINSE! I forgot to do this once and the result was  bitter.

Put the dried quinoa in a mesh strainer and blast well with water.

Whatever amount of quinoa you're cooking, you'll want to double that volume with water or stock (I love Better than Bouillion Low Sodium Chicken). One cup of dried quinoa yields 3 cups cooked.
I start by boiling a kettle of water and pouring it into a pyrex measuring cup. Stir in the bouillion,

Add a smashed but in tact garlic clove and a good pinch of salt. I drop in a sprig of rosemary and let it steep for about 10 minutes. Fish out the rosemary and pour the liquid into a pot. Bring it to a boil and then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes, until the liquid is absorbed and the little white rings have popped up. Turn off the heat. Fish out the garlic (you can chop it up and add it back in) and stir in some finely chopped scallions (1 for each 1/4 cup of dried quinoa).

Add a couple of generous splashes of vinegar, about 1 tablespoon per 1/4 cup of  dried quinoa.

Fluff with a fork. Taste and add more salt if necessary.

Let it sit until cooled and the add in more finely chopped herbs, a drizzle of olive oil and some black pepper.

This is great on its own and left in the fridge to have on hand.

 

Combined with cooked brown rice, it's a great host for:

chopped roasted or grilled vegetables

corn kernals

chopped cherry or heirloom tomatoes

chopped cucumbers

avocado or peppers

marinated vegetables

toasted pine nuts or pepitas

crumbled feta or blue cheese

 

My favorite thing is to have cooked rice and quinoa on hand for any greens like kale and chard that I can rescue from the produce bin at work. I just cut up the greens and sauté then with garlic, olive oil, salt and red pepper flakes and I've got a meal in just minutes.

The next morning a poached egg and shaved parmesan make an awesome breakfast bowl. I made pesto thanks to a basil rescue a couple of days ago.

Chicken Gyro Salad

Chicken Gyro Salad, originally uploaded by michele wynne.

I suppose (were I such a person) I could have just as much of a reason as anyone to hate Gwyneth Paltrow, but I don't and any of you who read this blog knows I am not amongst those in the anti-GP camp. I am, however, the Anti-GP. I am GP's polar opposite- 10 years older, 20 pounds over-weight, solitary in a studio apartment,  broke, in a broke-down kitchen with zero counter space and perpetually overwhelmed by a sink full of dishes. I buy supermarket sale tuna, honey from The Dollar Store and t-shirts from Goodwill. There is not one element of her life and lifestyle that I can relate to or say I've ever had in common with her. Except food, and my growing desire to cook healthier food. I love her cookbooks. I subscribe to goop and enjoy reading it. Mostly. I really could care less about the clothing and merchandising. I do feel envious of the travel though. I used to travel all the time. Now? not at all.

Yet, when I think how close I was to deleting the recent goop newletter from my overflowing inbox the other day...well, I feel almost guilty and ashamed after having been so pro-Gwyneth in my admiration of her latest cookbook (which I currently have my mitts on thanks to my local library).  I wasn't going to open it. It was one of those days when I just wasn't up to it. I did it anyway and as luck would have it, it turned out to be the smartest and most remarkable thing I did that day. I unearthed  a wonderful new keeper recipe and that is to be celebrated.

In her post about street food, scrolling down a bit I found this  Chicken Gyro Salad  and I couldn't wait to make it. I immediately pulled 3 chicken breasts I had in the freezer to defrost and did a little grocery shopping at work that evening buying just enough for my solitary salad:

 

1 little gem (the perfect lettuce heads for single serving salads)

1 large heirloom tomato

1 mediteranean cucumber

1 red onion

1 lemon

1 8oz. container of greek yogurt

 

I prepared the chicken and marinade just before I went to bed and cooked it on a grill pan for lunch the next day.

I thought it only fitting to use the left-over chicken in her Brown Rice and Kale  bowl (from My Father's Daughter) when trying to find a quickie dinner later that night. I topped it with the leftover tzatziki dressing. If I'd thought to buy pita bread, I would have made gyros with the leftovers. Next time. There will be many next times. I already have another batch of chicken marinating in the fridge right this very minute.

Thanks GP!