Vegetarian Quinoa Chili

1/2 cup cooked quinoa
2 small onions, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 jalapeno pepper, diced
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 medium zucchini, chopped
1 (15 ounce) cans black beans, drained and rinsed
1 (15 ounce) can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
3 (15 ounce) cans diced tomatoes
1 tablespoon ground cumin
Salt and black pepper, to taste

1. Put everything in the crock pot and cover completely with vegetable brother.  Give it a good stir.  
2. Cook on low for 4-5 hours.  

Yes, it is as simple as that.  And super delicious!

Recipe adapted from http://www.twopeasandtheirpod.com/vegetarian-quinoa-chili/

Fajitas!

Fajita Ingredients

• 2 small bell peppers, sliced (12 ounces)
• 1 small onion, sliced in half, then sliced root to tip (4 ounces)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 6-8 corn tortilla

Fajita Marinade

• 1/4 cup lime juice
• 2 tablespoons tequila
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 cloves of garlic, finely minced
• 1 small jalepeno pepper, seeded and finely minced
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• (mushrooms optional if you like them....ew)

Mix the marinade ingredients together in a large bowl. Add the bell peppers and onions. Toss to coat. Let marinate for 1 hour, mixing once or twice.  (I marinated for like 20 minutes and it was still delicious).

Heat a large heavy-bottomed skillet over high heat. Add the olive oil. Once hot, add the bell peppers, mushrooms and onions, draining as much of the marinade away as possible.

Cook, stirring only a few times, until any marinade has cooked off, and the vegetables are just beginning to sear around the edges, 7-10 minutes. Remove from heat and serve immediately with warmed tortillas.

I served with refined beans, salsa, and sour cream.  Oh, and margaritas...duh :)

Basil Butter Beans

Easy staple.

• 2 14.5 ounce cans butter beans, rinsed
• 1 14.5 ounce can whole peeled tomatoes
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 carrot, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 small red onion, diced
• 3 handfuls basil, roughly chopped
• salt and pepper

1. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
2. Add the onions and cook until they begin to soften. (Should just take a few minutes.) Add the garlic and carrot, and cook until the garlic is fragrant (about 1 minute more).
3. Add the tomatoes and juices, gently squeezing/tearing the tomatoes into bite-sized bits. Add a pinch of salt and a few grinds of pepper. Cook until the tomato juice begins to bubble.
4. Add the beans, cook until they are heated through.
5. Stir the basil in, allow to wilt (about half a minute to a minute).
6. Serve in a big bowl.  Enjoy!

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Grilled Peach Salad with Mozzarella & Arugula

Uh-MAZ-ING.  I looooved this.  Click on the link at the botom so you can see how good it was.

Grilled Peach Salad with Buffalo Mozzarella & Arugula

6 peaches, cut in half and pitted

salt

3-4 large handfuls arugula, washed and dried

1 small red onion, slivered

5 oz. buffalo mozarella or other fresh mozzarella, torn into bite-size pieces

4 Tbs. white balsamic vinegar

2 tsp. honey

2 tsp. dijon or whole grain mustard

2 Tbs. minced chives

1/3 c. olive oil

2 Tbs. creme fraiche or 1 Tbs. heavy cream

Light a fire in grill and let it burn down to med-hot.  I like to build the fire on one side of the grill so I can move things around to different temperatures.  Lightly salt the cut sides of the peaches, drizzle very lightly with olive oil and place cut side down on the grill.  When the peaches are charred and just beginning to soften, remove them to a platter and set aside.  Make the dressing: place vinegar, honey, mustard and chives in a small bowl.  While whisking constantly, slowly drizzle in olive oil until emulsified.  Whisk in the creme fraiche or cream.  Toss arugula and onion with vinaigrette and place on serving platter or dish.  Nestle peaches and mozzarella amongst greens and drizzle with a little more dressing.  Sprinkle with coarse sea salt and serve.

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Quinoa Lettuce Wraps

Another of Giles' favorites...and mine too!

Ingredients:

• 3 cups cooked quinoa
• 1 1/2 cups cooked black beans, if canned, rinsed and drained
• 2 green onions, finely sliced
• 8 ounces sliced water chestnuts, roughly chopped
• 2 carrots, julienned
• 1 head of bibb lettuce
• 1/2 cup reduced sodium soy sauce (or amino acids if gluten free)
• 2 tbsp toasted sesame oil (or regular EVOO)
• 2-3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tsp minced ginger
• 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 2 tbsp agave nectar (or honey)

Preparation:

1. In a large bowl mix together the first 5 ingredients and set aside.
2. Add the last 6 ingredients to a small bowl and mix together until throughly combined.  If using honey it helps to heat it up a little to make it easier to mix in.
3. Pour the sauce over the quinoa mixture and stir to combine.
4. Carefully remove the lettuce leaves from the bibb lettuce and fill each lettuce leaf with the quinoa mixture.  You can fill them up as much as you wish.

Notes:

The leftover quinoa mixture will keep in the fridge for up to 4 days.  The quinoa will soak up the flavor of the sauce and make excellent leftovers.  The recipe makes a large amount so you can enjoy these tasty wraps for lunch or dinner the entire week

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Power snack

Raw cookie dough bites

Ingredients

• 2/3 cup raw almonds
• 2/3 cup raw walnuts
• 2/3 cup raw oat flakes (see note below)
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp sea salt
• 1/4 cup raw agave nectar
• 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 3 tbsp cacao nibs or dark chocolate chips
• 2 tbsp of flax seed with 4 tbsp water mixture

Instructions

1. In a food processor, process the almonds, walnuts, oats, cinnamon and salt to a fine meal.
2. Add the agave nectar and vanilla and process to combine.
3. Next, add the cocoa nibs (or chocolate chips) and pulse just to combine.
4. Roll the cookie dough into balls about 1 tbsp each (wet your hands if the dough is too sticky) and place them on a cookie pan lined with parchment paper. Place the pan in the freezer for about an hour to firm up. Store balls in a tightly covered container in the freezer.
5. Eat!

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Broccoli with Hot Garlic Sauce

Nose runny?  Hung over?  Make this with extra peppers to clear things out.

• 1 bunch broccoli, cut into florets
• 1 Tbsp EVOO or coconut oil
• 1 Jalapeno o Serrano, chopped (or 2 if you want it extra spicy!)
• 1 bud of garlic 
• 1 knob of fresh ginger, chopped or shredded
• 1 Tbsp Soy sauce (or amino acids for gluten free)
• 1-2 Tsp Cornstarch
• 1/2 cup Vegetable broth

Heat oil in wok.

Stir fry the pepper, ginger and garlic until fragrant.  About a minute or two.

Add the broccoli and stir fry until the broccoli is bright green.

Add cornstarch, soy sauce and broth.  Cook another 30 seconds to a minute until the sauce is thickened.  

Serve with jasmine rice.