Warm Quinoa with Apples, Pecans, Cheddar Cheese and A Hint of Bacon

In an attempt to make quinoa appealing to my kids, and to do something more adventurous with it, I tried lots of new things.  This one is a delicious dish that bares little resemblance to quinoa-as-side-instead-of-rice.

Warm Quinoa with Apples, Pecans, Cheddar Cheese and a Hint of Bacon

1 1/2 cups Quinoa
3 strips of bacon
1 apple (I used a gala, but any relatively firm apple will do), diced
1 small onion, diced
1/4 cup pecans
4 oz. cheddar cheese, diced
1 3/4 cup water

Toast dry quinoa 5-7 minutes in a medium saucepan on medium-high heat.  Give the pan a little shake every few minutes.  It's amazing how toasting the quinoa changes the flavor.  It will brown slightly, become fragrant, and even pop!  Once it's popping all the time and smells good, remove it to a bowl.

While toasting the quinoa on the stove, toast pecans in a 350 degree oven for 8-12 minutes, also until fragrant.  You can do this step ahead.

Add the bacon to the now empty saucepan.  Cook it up!  I prefer a crispy bacon, especially when adding it to a dish like this, but if you're a chewy bacon person that's ok too.  Remove the bacon from the pan to a paper-towel lined plate.

Now add the diced apple to the remaining bacon fat in the pan.  Brown it up for just a few minutes.  You are aiming for infusing the bacon flavor, a little brown, and a slight softening, but cooked apples can get mushy.  Remove the apples to the same plate with the bacon.

Add the onion to the pan with any bacon fat that is still there.  You want to cook it until soft and browning slightly.  Add the quinoa and water, bring to a boil.  Reduce to a simmer and cook about 20 minutes, stirring at the 10 minute mark once.  While the quinoa is cooking, chop the bacon into bite-sized pieces.

When the quinoa is cooked (toothsome, not mushy), remove from heat, add the apples.  Allow to sit for 5 minutes covered.

Stir in or top with the pecans, cheddar and bacon.

The Perfect Salad

I have had a salad for lunch almost every day for the last many months.  I've been taking better care of my body by eating more veggies and working out.  The results are that I feel great and look like a whole new person (skin is clear, clothing sizes have more than cut in half).

Not all salads are created equal.  There is certainly nothing wrong with a green salad with lettuce and cucumber, peppers and carrots... but that would not satisfy me for an every day lunch.

This salad: Juicy cantaloupe, roasted beets, pistachios, herbed goat cheese, homemade vinaigrette over spring mix

Salad secrets:
1.  Add sweet fresh fruit.  Use whatever is in season.  Right now, in Virginia, I can get fresh local blueberries and blackberries.  Cantaloupes, peaches and cherries, too!
2.  Add something crunchy.  I add a different nut to my salad each day.  I choose from pecans, almonds, pistachios, cashews and sunflower seeds.
3.  Add something creamy.  My go-to recently has been an herbed goat cheese because it goes with so many fruits and nuts so nicely.
4.  A big bed of mixed greens goes with almost anything, but choose something that you enjoy.
5.  A home-made batch of vinaigrette will keep in a squeeze bottle in the fridge for weeks.  If you pull it out when you start prepping the fruits and veggies it will be warm enough to drizzle over the salad.

This salad: Apple, blueberries, pecans, white cheddar, homemade vinaigrette over spring mix

The same principles apply easily to many salads.  

Think: Garden fresh tomato, toasted pine nuts, fresh mozzarella, and a few basil leaves, and the same vinaigrette.  Yum!

Basic Vinaigrette

The dressing will stay together better with a tiny bit of mustard (dijon), and a tiny bit of mayonnaise.  I use maybe a teaspoon of each, a clove of very finely minced garlic, and vinegar of my choice (maybe 2 tablespoons).  I mix these together with a small pinch of salt and a crack or 2 of pepper, then shake (or whisk) in about 1/4 cup olive oil.  If it's too garlicky for your tastes simply add another bit of the mustard, mayo, vinegar and oil in the same ratios.  I often quadruple this recipe to take to a potluck or even just to keep on hand in the fridge for my daily salads.

Balsamic vinegar is a bolder flavor and not as universal, so I usually opt for red or white wine vinegar.  I've tried sherry vinegar and have found it's not much different.  I wouldn't use distilled white vinegar.  That's for cleaning windows!

Whole Wheat Pizza Crust

Like the pita bread recipe, the solution to making whole wheat pizza that doesn't have the texture of cardboard is simply adding gluten. For my local friends, our grocery store doesn't carry it (this whole gluten-free fad has influenced their shelves). You can, however, buy it at Yoder's while you visit the goats.

Whole Wheat Pizza Crust

3 cups whole wheat flour

3 Tablespoons wheat gluten

1 teaspoon yeast

2 teaspoons salt

a generous cup of room temperature water

1 tablespoon olive oil, plus more for the bowl

 

Combine the flour, gluten, yeast and salt in the bowl of either a food processor (pulse a few times) or stand mixer (on low speed to avoid wearing the flour).

Add the water and oil through feed tube of food processor, or pour in while the stand mixer is running. Increase speed gradually as the liquid is incorporated. You will likely need to add about another 1/4 cup water. The water/flour ratio is right when the dough forms a ball and pulls away from the sides of the bowl. You don't want it too wet (sticking to your fingers) or too dry (won't rise well), but have no fear, there is a nice range and you can always adjust by adding either a tablespoon of water or a tablespoon of flour.

If you're using a food processor, the machine does all the kneading in about 30 seconds for you. Just knead by hand a few times to make a ball, place in a lightly oiled bowl seam down, and cover with a warm damp towel.

If you're using a stand mixer, the mixer will knead the dough on medium for a few minutes (4-5). Then knead by hand to form a ball, place in a lightly oiled bowl seam down, and cover with a warm damp towel.

Let the dough rise 3-5 hours in a warm spot in your kitchen. If it's winter and drafty, you may want to preheat your oven while making the dough for just a few minutes, and then let it cool a bit to about 100 degrees to create a warm spot. Note: Make sure to remove the dough before preheating for the pizza!

About an hour before you want to eat, preheat the oven with a pizza stone in it to the highest temperature you can. We used to have an oven that maxed out at 500, but now use 550.

When you preheat, divide the dough into 3 or 4 pieces (how many pizzas you want to make), form them into balls, place on the counter and let rest about 30 minutes.

Stretch the dough by turning it like you're steering a car until your desired thickness. If it is tearing a lot, let it rest longer.

Place dough on a well-floured peel, put on the toppings of your choice, and slide it onto the stone for about 6 minutes, until bubbling and browning nicely.

Let cool on a rack before slicing.

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Whole Wheat Pita Bread

It's been a long time since I made a post, but have recently been adding lots of new recipes to my repertoire. I hope you enjoy!

I never thought I could make Pita Bread from scratch, but once I did it ruined store bought pita for my family.

Pita Bread

3 cups whole wheat flour

3 tablespoons gluten

1 1/2 teaspoons yeast

2 teaspoons salt

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 cup room temperature water, plus more as needed

Place the flour, gluten, yeast, and salt in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse a few times, then while the processor is running, add the cup of water and the tablespoon of olive oil. I usually need to add about 1/3 cup water, but flour can be finicky. Add enough water to bring the dough together around the blade until it starts thumping. Knead a few times by hand on a very barely floured counter. Let rise in a lightly oiled bowl with a damp towel over it for a few hours (2 or 3).

Preheat oven to 500 degrees for at least 30 minutes with a stone in the oven. Divide the dough while the oven is preheating into 6-12 small dough balls, but keep them covered with the damp towel.

When you're ready to bake them, flatten each dough ball, then roll it out very thin with a rolling pin. Do your best not to wrinkle or fold the pita, which prevents the pita from puffing.

Place it on the stone for 2-3 minutes.

Cool, huh?

The freshness and lightness is amazing! I've also successfully made this recipe in the stand mixer, switching from the paddle attachment to the dough hook once the dough ball comes together.

 

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Homemade Mozzarella

Playing with cheese-making is pretty fun.  Recently, I've been snagging raw cow's milk from a friend's dairy farm, since making mozzarella from supermarket milk is tough... it's pasteurized at a higher temperature and isn't anywhere near as fresh.  We've succeeded with supermarket milk, but the fresher it is, the better.

Checking for clear separation between the curds and whey

Cutting the curd before reheating

Unfortunately, I didn't have an extra hand to take pictures with during the stretching and forming steps. It's a learning process that I certainly haven't mastered yet.  The joy is in the experimentation, the minor successes, and the tasting of the best-so-far.

Ricotta and Calzones

Making things from scratch "ruins" us for the store bought version more often than not.  This experiment was no exception.

We got the necessary gear to make our own homemade mozzarella and ricotta online.   It's actually very easy to make ricotta.  The recipe said to hang it to drain, and we rigged this set up with kitchen twine, butter muslin, a carabiner and an s-hook over a bowl.  Included in the kit is a 30 minute recipe, plus draining time, but completely reasonable to do while the dough is rising.  All it takes is 1 gallon of milk, 1 tsp. citric acid, and 1 tsp. cheese salt.  Really!  You don't need to be a master cook to be able to do this.

Hanging ricotta to drain 

A steady drip

Drained ricotta

Closing up the calzones

Sealing the calzones with a "pico" I learned making empanadas in Bolivia

Baked to golden and delicious

The filling is the perfect consistency, not runny like with store bought ricotta

While we love our weekly Friday night pizza, we thoroughly enjoyed a slight change of pace.  I still made the same pizza dough, the same tomato sauce for dipping, but this time I mixed the ricotta with mozzarella, parmesan, and two of our favorites (pepperoni and pesto/spinach).

For dipping, I made one change to the marinara.  I still let the garlic, pepper flakes, and basil cook in the olive oil, then remove them.  But I add tomato paste to the oil before adding the canned tomatoes.  I let the tomato paste cook in the oil, turning the oil red, then add the tomatoes.  If you use crushed tomatoes, you can skip the blending step.

Calzones

1 recipe pizza dough 
2 cups ricotta
1 cup shredded part skim mozzarella (fresh mozzarella is too moist for this recipe)
1 cup grated parmesan
1 cup filling of your choice (I always make 2 different kinds, dividing the cheeses in half)
salt and pepper to taste

My favorite filling is:  finely chopped spinach (cook it down and drain it well) mixed with a few tablespoons of pesto.  Yum!

Preheat oven to 350.  Roll out half of the dough with a rolling pin on a lightly floured counter.  If the dough is not retaining its shape, let it rest under a kitchen towel for 10 minutes or so.  Fill with half of the filling mixture.  Fold the dough over the filling, and seal closed with a moist fingertip.  Then you may crimp it to seal (just make sure it's not going to split open in the oven).  Repeat with the other half of dough and filling.  Bake on a baking sheet for 35 minutes or until golden and delicious.  Let it cool for a few minutes to help keep the cheese from oozing out.  Cut with a serrated knife.  Serve with warm tomato sauce.

A New Approach

I'd like to try a new approach to updating this blog.  I've already posted so many of my favorites, and sometimes forget what is already on the blog.  I've also been a little less creative recently with a 4 month old baby who is still not consistently sleeping through the night.... so I think I'll post some highlights of our week's menu with links (as appropriate) to my posts of those recipes and include any new ones.

This past week we enjoyed:

1. Panko Breaded Tilapia

2. 3 non-traditional pizzas:

      Barbecue sauce, turkey and cheddar

      Refried Beans and cheddar topped with corn salsa and sour cream

      Peanut sauce (see below) with basmati rice, grated carrots and snow peas

3. Cheeseburgers and mashed potatoes

4. Grilled cheese on homemade rye bread with a fried egg on top

5. Hummus and homemade pita bread (to take to a potluck) 

Of course, these don't include the veggie sides, which this week were often simple salads or frozen veggies that I threw in the microwave.

I'm also going to try to remember to take pictures sometimes to include.  I guess I'll start with that next week since I completely forgot this past week.



Peanut Sauce

This is something I completely made up and I'm guessing on the quantities, and I'm sure it could be made a variety of ways.

2 tablespoons Peanut Butter
2 cloves garlic
1 inch piece of fresh ginger- grated
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon fish sauce
maybe a few drops of water

I start with the garlic in a tiny food processor, and then add the remaining ingredients.  This makes a really thick paste which is fine for the pizza application, but if you're using it as a sauce (like for stir-fry) I recommend thinning it with coconut milk.  You could also add honey, sriracha, scallions or even pre-made hoisin sauce.