Red and Green or White and Red

This week's recipe: Quinoa Salad with Black Beans and Corn. We liked it so much, we had it twice! The first time, we used white quinoa with a red pepper, and the second time we used red quinoa and a green pepper. You wouldn't think it would make a difference, but it does! I picked this gem up from the babyfit.com website.

Quinoa Salad
1 1/2 C raw quinoa
1 15 oz can of black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can of sweet kernel corn, drained
1 1/2 Tbs red wine vinegar
1 bell pepper, chopped
4 scallions, chopped
1 tsp garlic, minced
1/4 tsp cayenne
1/4C cilantro, chopped
1/3 C lime juice
1/2 tsp salt, plus more to taste
1 1/4 tsp ground cumin
1/3 C olive oil

Prepare the quinoa as directed on package.

Mix beans with vinegar and salt and pepper to taste.

Add beans, corn, bell pepper, scallions, garlic, cayenne, and cumin to quinoa and mix well.

Whisk together lime juice, salt, cumin, and add oil while whisking. Add to the salad and salt and pepper to taste.

This tastes even better as leftovers.

The husband requested an immediate repeat, while the toddler turned her nose up the second time I served it. I think that's more about her being 2 years old than her not liking it, though.

Toddler-Adult Translation

"Feek, Mama!" Speaks, Mama! as in Martha Speaks.

"you fink." you think and tell me the answer.

"I need foon." I need a spoon.

"Fwirrel!" squirrel!

"I'm so cold!" Pick me up and snuggle me. I don't care if it's 90F out.

"I need tension." Come sit next to me while I poop on the toilet.

"Here you go! I got the momter!" Here's the baby monitor, I brought it up from downstairs, even though you don't need it up here.

"Next time I listen." Please stop lecturing me. I already had my time out and want to go play.

"I only wub you foh much." I always love you so much.

Sloppy Garden Joes

Another husband-approved dish! This one comes originally from www.babyfit.com. I have made a few small alterations to it, with great success. It has officially been placed on the "make again" list with a recommendation to try it out with various types of BBQ sauces.

Sloppy Garden Joe's Chili

• 1 onion, chopped
  
• 1/2 green pepper, chopped
  
• 1 lb. ground turkey
  
• 1 8 oz. can tomato sauce
  
• 1 15 oz. can stewed tomatoes, not drained
  
• 1 8oz. can mushrooms, drained
  
• 1/2 cup barbecue sauce
• 1 15 oz. can of black beans, rinsed
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp oregano
• 1 tsp liquid smoke
  
• salt and pepper to taste

1. Sauté onions, green pepper and ground turkey in a pan over medium-high heat until turkey is cooked through. I added a little canola oil to the pan to keep the turkey from sticking since I was not using a non-stick pan.

2. Add tomato sauce, crushed tomatoes, mushrooms, beans, garlic, oregano, liquid smoke, barbecue sauce and seasonings and bring to a boil.

3. Reduce heat and simmer until the children are down for the night, stirring occasionally.

4. Serve with cheese, if desired.

Serves 8.

Nightly Prayer by A

"Dear God,
thank you for Papa, Nonna, Micky, Minnie. Once upon time I hurt elbow in the morning. Once upon time, once time. Daddy, Mama, Maggie.
Amen."

Pizza Crust Nirvana

I finally found a pizza crust recipe worth repeating! I have been searching for 15 years for one that I liked! Oh, my, stars! It's grand. The whole family devoured it!

Here it is: pizza crust.

We topped it with:

pepperoni
Italian sausage (chicken, with mozzarella cheese in it)
red pepper
black olives
feta

I used Ragu's jarred pizza sauce, gourmand that I am. LOL. It was divine. Seriously, the toddler ate three pieces all by herself! My husband did not complain about it being too doughy, and I did not complain about it being too hard/crunchy.

Next stop, grilled pizza...

Nola Bar Update

Nola bars made with Virginia peanuts, m&ms, and raisins are delicious. Also, lowering the sugar content made a notable positive alteration to the flavor. Less cookie-like, more satisfying.

Homemade 'Nola Bars

I tried a new recipe for granola/energy bars this weekend. I think I'm in love.

I got the recipe from Readers' Digest, of all places. Here it is.

I used walnuts, currants, and choc chips. Wowsa. I LOVE it. The sweetness comes largely from the chocolate chips, which surprised me. I think I could leave out the chocolate and then play with savory granola bars. Maybe do sesame and ginger? Craisin and orange zest?

YUM! The toddler approves, too.