Introduction/Quinoa Recipes

I have been passionate about fitness for years, even if I wasn’t blatantly aware of it at the time.  I grew up playing various sports; gymnastics from 1^st to 8^th grade, soccer from age 6 all the way through my sophomore year in college and in the past few years long distance running is a daily activity for me.  I’d say my love for fitness has really grown in the past year after really beginning to pay attention to what works, what doesn’t, and physically being able to maintain a healthy body, mind and image.  Trying to break into the fitness industry as a personal trainer is on my agenda for the very near future, and something in my opinion that will set me apart from your average fitness guru is my second passion that is food.  I just recently graduated from culinary school and possess knowledge about food that a typical fitness professional may not.   Being classically trained in the kitchen is what will help make me successful in what I want to do with food and fitness.

Developing and experimenting with recipes has also been on my interest list for quite some time, even before I decided to pursue culinary school.  I love a challenge and the thought of creating something new and great to please others is why I do what I do.  I must admit more times than not things won’t turn out just as I planned, but this is all part of the learning process and part of the fun, right?  Creating healthy and satisfying recipes is what I want to do.  Healthy food can taste great and I want to teach you how it’s done.

My goal is to take an ingredient, something healthy of course, and focus on developing and sharing recipes using these ingredients.  The first ingredient I want to focus on is Quinoa, what Americans have recently discovered as a superfood.  Although others have known it for centuries, fitness professionals and nutritionists alike are hopping on the bandwagon of this well-rounded food.  Containing all 8 essential amino acids, a good source of protein and fiber, this faux grain (actually a seed) is a good bang for your nutritional buck.  Quinoa is very versatile and can be eaten alone, mixed with vegetables and or proteins to create a salad, be used as a binder for burgers, or even be included in sweet treats such as cookies.  Below are a few recipes I’ve put together for a healthy satisfying ‘salad’, cookies and pancakes.  These recipes are easily adaptable to personal taste and any dietary restrictions one might have.  I have also included a few notes on how you can modify ingredients for seasonality or just a way to switch things up. 

Chicken & Quinoa Salad with Roasted Tomatoes and Balsamic Reduction (4-6 portions)

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts

2 cups Quinoa (red, yellow, or black)

4 cups water or stock of your choice

1 cup cucumber medium dice, skin on

1 cup bell peppers medium dice

1 cup green beans, ends trimmed and halved

½ cup black beans

2 cups tomatoes, quartered

1 cup balsamic vinegar

¼ cup red wine

1 tbs Olive Oil

½ cup pine nuts, toasted

¼ cup tbs cilantro, chopped

1 lime

1 Tbs thyme chopped

1Tbs parsley chopped

Salt & Pepper to taste

Method:

Balsamic Reduction:

-       - Combine balsamic vinegar and red wine in a medium saucepot.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until it’s the consistency of a syrup, approximately 30 minutes (note it will thicken as it cools).

Quinoa

-       - Combine Quinoa and water or stock in a medium saucepot.  Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer until tender and all the liquid is absorbed (15-20 minutes)

Roasted Tomatoes

-      -  core tomatoes, and quarter.  Gently toss with olive oil, salt, pepper, thyme and parsley.

-       Place on a rack and bake at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until light golden brown color begins to form on the tops.

Vegetable Prep:

-      -  Cut cucumbers into ¼ inch cubes, leave skins on.

-      -  remove both ends of green beans and cut in half, seed and chop peppers, sauté with lime juice and salt for 5 minutes, set aside

-       - Rinse black beans in a colander, set aside.

For the Chicken:

-       - Season chicken with salt and pepper, grill, rest, dice into bite sized pieces

To Assemble:

-       - in a large mixing bowl, combine quinoa, chicken, beans, cucumber, peppers, and green beans.  When ready to serve garnish with 2-3 roasted tomatoes, pine nuts, cilantro, and drizzle with balsamic reduction and lime juice and zest.

Notes:

-       - This balsamic reduction can be used for various things; it’s great as a salad dressing, on sautéed or roasted veggies, or even just drizzled over chicken.

-       - Substitute any vegetables you like, whatever is in season.  Examples: zucchini, yellow squash, sweet potato cubes, broccoli or even beets, almost anything works!

-       - Also feel free to substitute your protein, turkey cutlets, tofu, shrimp or even steak could be other options.  Or leave the meat out entirely.

-       - Dried fruit can be a bright addition for some sweet and sour components.

-       - To put another spin on it, try putting an over easy egg on top.

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Quinoa cookies

2 Cups whole-wheat flour

½ teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons cinnamon

¼ teaspoon ground cloves

½ teaspoon ground nutmeg

1 teaspoon baking soda

½ cup butter, at room temperature

1 cup brown sugar

2 large eggs

1 cup applesauce or pumpkin puree (mashed banana could work here too)

2 tbs of almond or vanilla extract

2 cups old-fashioned oats

1 cup cooked, cooled quinoa

1 10 oz bag of 60% cocoa (semi-sweet) chocolate chips

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a Silpat and set aside.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, salt, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and baking soda. Set aside.  

3. Cream together butter and brown sugar until smooth.  Add in the eggs and extract. Add the applesauce and mix until combined.

4. Slowly add the dry ingredients into liquid ingredients and mix until combined. Stir in the oats, quinoa, and chocolate chips.

5. Spoon about a tablespoon of dough onto a large baking sheet. Bake cookies for 12-14 minutes, or until cookies are just barely set. Remove cookies from baking sheet and cool on a wire cooling rack.

Banana Quinoa Pancakes with a Peanut Butter Mousse

1 cup whole wheat flour

¼ cup yellow cake mix

¼ cup cooked, cooled quinoa

1-2 fresh mashed bananas

1 tsp baking powder

1 vanilla bean or 1 tsp vanilla extract

1 egg

½ cup 2% milk

1.     Combine flour, cake mix, baking powder in a medium mixing bowl. 

2.     Mix together milk, banana, egg and vanilla bean.

3.     Add dry ingredients to wet, stir in quinoa

4.     Preheat a griddle to medium-low-medium heat, spray with pan spray to prevent sticking

5.     Laddle in batter, flip when bubbles begin to form around the edge or until golden brown

6.     Carmelize some sliced bananas in the pan, use for garnish

Peanut Butter Mousse (optional)

½ cup peanut butter

1 cup whipped cream

- Whip cream until stiff peaks form, fold in peanut butter.

Pancakes are versatile and almost anything can be added to them, feel free to experiment!