Showing posts with label quinoa. Show all posts
Showing posts with label quinoa. Show all posts

Thursday, August 29, 2013

Fancy Camp Food #5


So here's what happened...I actually made a REAL camp breakfast...and didn't take pictures.  I meant to, but everything just happened so fast and I chose to avoid burning eggs rather than getting the picture.  Here is the "prep" set up as proof!


As always we made awesome coffee in our camping french press.  It really does come out the best coffee we ever make.  And while waiting for the water to boil, the eggs to cook, and any other waiting "opportunity" we munched on donut holes.  It's not camping without them.


So breakfast itself was simply breakfast burritos with goat cheese and basil (left over from last night's caprese bites!)  I scrambled the eggs and just before they were done, scooped some soft goat cheese in and sprinkled with sliced basil.  Wrap that baby in a tortilla, and eat!

Just after breakfast we headed down to the lake so the kids could fish, play in the water, ride in the kayak, and bask in the sun!  It was a great way to spend the morning.  The dogs loved it too!






Lunch was virtually the same plan as all camping trips this summer (see posts here and here) and was comprised of picky-pick items.  Hubby isn't a fan of bread in general (I know, I only WISH I had that same problem) and definitely isn't interested in eating it while camping as it always dries out.  So bite sized food with crackers makes him very happy.  And for me, it makes for easy clean up and doesn't take much "work" before you get to dig in.

Ingredients

  • Heirloom baby tomatoes (from last nights caprese bites)
  • String cheese
  • Sliced avocado
  • Edemame
  • Crackers
  • Deli turkey slices for him
  • And admittedly some cookies....







After a thrilling game of Apples to Apples and a half game of Yahtzee, it was time to start prepping for dinner.  In order to do this, we needed wine.  We splurged and brought a nice bottle of wine as a treat.  And then were super classy drinking it in the yellow plastic cups.  




 Dinner tonight was another "do-again" from an earlier camp trip with an asian style bowl.  The variation which makes this different is that instead of rice, I used some of my pre-made quinoa to save time and effort.  And hubs skipped the bowl completely and made an actual plate of food.

Ingredients

  • Quinoa
  • Bell Peppers
  •  Edemame
  • Tofu
  • Stir Fry sauce
  • Salmon (for him!) 

 Directions

  1. If you didn't prep ahead of time- you should make your quinoa, rice, couscous, or grain of choice now.  It will take the longest and it can sit and wait for the rest to catch up!
  2. Drain tofu- I layer a plate, couple paper towels, tofu, more paper towels, another plate and then anything you can use as a weight.  This will squeeze the moisture from the tofu and get it ready for grilling while you prep the rest of the items (and maybe have a glass of wine!)
  3. Marinate the salmon steak in sauce
  4. Chop your bell peppers into bite sized pieces
  5. De-shell your edemame
  6. Cut tofu into medium-small, thin pieces.
  7. Set your pan to medium heat (which I know is impossible to really regulate on a camp stove!)
  8. Add a little butter or oil to the hot pan, and drop in your tofu.  Leave it alone for a three to five minutes and flip once it has started to get a golden color.
  9. After another couple minutes, push tofu to the side and add the veggies to let them stir fry for just a few minutes.
  10. Pour in enough sauce to cover the bottom of the pan.  
  11. Stir to coat and let simmer for another three to five minutes
  12. Meanwhile- add the salmon steak to your grill and cook on each side according to the size and your "wellness" preference.
  13. Add some quinoa to your bowl, and top with stir fried tofu and veggies & salmon








Josh decided to have quinoa and veggies on the side!

This was such a GREAT day at the lake.  Wonderful friends, sunshine, and great food!  Next up- camping chocolate tacos!  This is the kind of dessert I can't resist!



Fancy Camp Food #4- Quinoa and more!


Camping was the cool thing to do this summer.  At least for us it was!  (And by cool, I am cleverly also making reference to the nights when I thought my feet would actually freeze off.)  We haven't spent this much time in the great outdoors for a few years.  And it was awesome.  Great times, great friends, great wine, and even great food.  Sometimes...I'll admit I took a couple "easy way out" opportunities.  Don't judge.  This trip WAS pretty great food, I'll even call it total a success.  I had items planned well, which certainly helps make camp food easy.

The first thing I did to prepare, was to cook up a large batch of quinoa.  It would serve as a base for many of the meals this trip.


I also pre sliced one each- red, yellow, and orange bell peppers.  This made for easy packing, easy snacking, and less prep time at camp



I finished my prep work and "shortcut" choices with edemame in a bag, heirloom bite sized tomatoes, tiny little mozzarella balls packed in water, a mix of oil and balsamic, and my favorite spinach arugula mix!  Packed it all up, and headed out after work.





When we arrived it was just starting to get a little dark.  We had enough time to quickly unload the truck and create this little appetizer to share with our friends.  How cute are these Camping Caprese Bites???  


And they couldn't be easier.  We made both tomato and peach caprese bites.  And the most work was cutting up the peaches!  Everything else was simple assembly.  Grab a toothpick, add two mozzarella balls, followed with a torn leaf of basil, and finally a tomato or a peach bite,  Drizzle with the oil/balsmic mixture, and voila!  Perfect to pass around camp while everyone was preparing the meals.  And easy enough for the kids to snack on as well.

By this time, it was starting to get dark.  Josh grilled up a steak, and I quickly made us some salads to finish the meal.  Throw all of the following into a bowl and toss with some oil & balsamic.  Done!

Ingredients

  1. 1/3 cup cooked quinoa
  2. Handful of spinach/arugula mix
  3. 1/2 chopped peach
  4. A sprinkle of dried cranberries
  5. Top with small mozzarella balls (would also be great with shaved parm!  Maybe even better...)



Stay tuned for the next fancy camp post with easy lunch items, and the most important- dessert!




Monday, July 15, 2013

Cheesy Broccoli Quinoa (Alison's Recipe)


This delish dish is brought to you by request of Alison, my beautiful (and brand new mom) sister in law!  She asked if I knew any yummy quinoa recipes.  Yes, actually I do!  You can't get much yummier than this one.  Seriously.  This is a version of a classic casserole that everyone has seen at one gathering or another.  Think movie worthy,old school, church meeting.  But better.  And with quinoa.  It's very simple and has all of the comfort and nostalgia that you expect when you hear the word casserole.  It's vegetarian by design but can easily be "beefed" up with a protein like chicken, ham, or even tofu to keep the veggie friendly aspect.  It's super versatile like that!  Plus, the great part is that you probably already have all of these ingredients.  It's cooking from your pantry 101.

So enjoy Alison's Recipe.  She won't mind if you steal it.  Plus, she'll never know.  Shhhhhh!

Ingredients

  • 1 can- Cream of broccoli soup
  • If you are feeling adventurous, make your own 10 oz "cream of anything" soup
  • 2 cups steamed broccoli
  • Diced chicken if you don't want this meatless
  • 1 1/2 cups cooked quinoa (prepare as directed on your package)
  • 1/3 cup mayonnaise
  • 2 Tbsp milk
  • 1 1/4 cup shredded cheese (I used cheddar & jack mix)
  • 1/2 tsp sugar
  • 1/4 tsp pepper
  • Dash nutmeg (I am heavy handed and used about 1/4 tsp!)
  • Fresh Parmesan for topping

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
  2. Get your quinoa on to cook.  Follow the instructions on your package and don't forget to rinse in water.
  3. Steam the broccoli
  4. Prep your baking dish (8x8 or 8x11 work well) with a coat of cooking spray or butter.
  5. In a large bowl, mix the soup, mayo, milk, cheese, sugar, pepper, & nutmeg.
  6. Stir in the cooked quinoa and broccoli
  7. Stir in chicken for a more protein rich, meat lover version
  8. Pour into baking dish
  9. Sprinkle Parmesan on top (I didn't have any and just used more cheddar/jack) 
  10. Bake for 35 minutes until it's golden and bubbly.





I added his chicken to about 2/3 of the "batter" after having already poured my 1/3 into the dish.  I like to pretend there is a magic barrier which keeps his chicken from contaminating my side.  I should have used His & Hers ramekins...
The little toothpicks act as a barrier to keep the chicken on HIS side!

 We served this with some Parmesan toast. Cause, well... everyone loves toast! And it was delicious, creamy, super easy, and a comforting version of a classic casserole.  This will be added to the rotation for sure.  It would be great to serve with a nice salad but I was lazy and decided the broccoli counted for a vegetable.  I mean it IS one!  So it counts.  Totally counts.  I'm not gonna argue this point.