Quinoa and More

If you made far too much quinoa, as I did, this is how we used it up. I chopped up some toasted nuts, dried fruit, apple and put it in a pan with the quinoa, some cinnamon and nutmeg and warmed it all up with a little milk for breakfast the next day.

Menu

Monday: Rigatoni with Shrimp and Some Other Stuff

Tuesday: Veggie Burgers and Asparagus

Wednesday: Curried Quinoa with Cauliflower, Almonds and Dried Apricots

Thursday: Egg Drop Soup with Shitake Mushrooms and Edmame Beans (on the side)

Friday: Falafel

Saturday: Pizza (we ordered in), Salad, Chocolate Cake with Kahlua Whip Cream and Ice Cream*

Sunday: BBQ Salmon, Sauteed Peppers, Onions and Asparagus, Ziti Salad, Spinach and Strawberry Salad and Leftover Chocolate Cake

*I didn't add any of this to the grocery list

Weekly Pantry List

Olive oil, canola oil, rice wine vinegar, balsamic vinegar, soy sauce, fresh garlic, walnuts, flour, baking powder, cumin, curry powder

Weekly Grocery List

Pecorino cheese (1/4 cup) - or whatever sharper cheese you may have on hand

Package of shrimp (400g bag)

eggs
plain yogurt (thick)

3 carrots

2 lemons

1 red pepper (need 1/2) 

1 zucchini
1 cucumber
4 tomatoes

1 bunch asparagus
1 bunch green onions
6 shitake mushrooms
fresh baby spinach (need 1/2 cup)
2 stalks celery
cauliflower

1 onion
1 red onion

Fresh thyme

2 bunches cilantro
flat leaf parsley

3 beets

Sweet potato (I used 1/2)

Lettuce

Green apple
fresh ginger (Tbsp grated)
edamame beans

Rigatoni
Almond slivers (need 1/2 cup)
dried apricots (need 1/2 cup, thinly sliced)
orange juice (need 1/4 cup)
Quinoa (need 2 cups cooked)

1 19 oz can chickpeas
1 19 oz can black beans

1 19 oz can lentils
2 cartons of veggie stock (need 6 cups)

Whole wheat hamburger buns

Whole wheat pitas

Rigatoni with Shrimp and Some Other Stuff

So our backyard is half grass, half snow with a whole lot of puddles mixed in. It’s a kid’s dream come true … well, at least my kid’s. There are too many puddles to let Harper play out there without an adult, because I’m worried about her drowning – not getting wet. Today we joined Hannah out in the yard to play and the girls were having a blast splashing in this big mud puddle. I ran inside for a minute to pull the sweet potatoes out of the oven and I look back and Harper is sitting in the mud puddle and Hannah is washing her hair with snow! Poor little Harper, although she didn’t really seem to mind.

Recipe

This is what we had in the house:

Package of shrimp, shelled
3 small carrots

1 zucchini

½ red onion

3 large cloves of garlic

fresh thyme

olive oil

balsamic vinegar

rigatoni (I had a sandwich ziplock bag full of dry rigatoni – technical measurement, I know)

3 beets

½ sweet potato

lettuce

green apple

walnuts

¼ c pecorino cheese, grated

This is what I did.

Preheat the oven to 350F.

Peel the beets cut into wedges place on a piece of foil and drizzle with olive oil, season with salt and pepper, wrap up tightly and bake in the oven for about an hour. Peel and slice, about ¼ inch thick, sweet potato, place on a parchment lined baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil, season with salt and pepper and roast for about 20 minutes (flipping halfway through).

Chop the garlic, onions, carrots and zucchini and sauté in a little olive oil until soft (start with the garlic, onions and carrots, adding the zucchini a little later so it doesn’t get over cooked). Meanwhile bring a pot of water to a boil, and cook pasta. Once veggies are cooked remove from pan and add the shrimp and cook until pink, remove as much of the extra liquid from the shrimp and add the veggies, cooked pasta, a really good glugg of olive oil, 2 Tbsp of balsamic vinegar, 2 tsp of fresh thyme, the pecorino cheese and stir until the cheese is melty and all is warm and combined.

Toast the walnuts (about ½ cup), wash and dry lettuce and slice half a green apple into thin slices. Toss together nuts, lettuce, apple, beets, sweet potato and drizzle all with a little olive oil, balsamic vinegar and maple syrup (or whatever your standard dressing is) and toss.

Veggie Burgers and Asparagus

Harper fell asleep shortly after we got home from the grocery store and I called my mom to ask her to stay with her while I picked Hannah up (I am so lucky to be so close to my parents and have them be so generous with their time) from school. It's nice to be able to pick Hannah up on my own once in awhile and be able to focus my full attention on her and her day at school. It was a very big day, because today they walked to the gym without having to hold on to a rope but by holding hands with a partner instead.
 
When we returned home Harper was still asleep on the couch and Hannah and I curled up in the chair together and read some books while we waited for Harper to wake up. She's so busy these days playing with her sister and on her own that we don't seem to have a lot of time where we cuddle and read and chat just the two of us. It's kind of like junk food, now that I've had a little I remember how GREAT it is and I'm craving more and more. Why can't I remember this when she wants to play or cuddle and I'm trying to get a bunch of things done and I'm encouraging her to play on her own, or find her sister and play with her?

Recipe
We are always on the hunt for new veggies burgers, I'm really on the hunt for one that you can cook on the BBQ. These ones were really tasty, but not BBQ consistency. I slightly altered this recipe from Simple Bites: Real Food for the Family Table.

Whole wheat buns

Your favorite burger fixings
1 small onion, chopped
1/2 red pepper, chopped
1 Tablespoon olive oil
2 cloves garlic, pressed
1/2 cup fresh cilantro leaves
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
one can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 1/2 cup canned lentils
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 egg, slightly beaten
1 cup bread crumbs (I used toasted fresh ones)
flour

Preheat oven to 400F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and then spray with olive oil, or whatever cooking spray you use.

Saute onion and red pepper with cumin until soft and let cool. In a food processor put onion, red pepper, garlic, cilantro, salt and pepper and pulse until chopped fine. Add the beans, lentils and egg and whirl up together until combined but still has good texture. Mix in, with a spoon, the egg and bread crumbs until combined (I may try to omit the egg next time and see if it's sticky and moist enough on it's own). Once it's all combined, put a cup of flour in a bowl, flour your hands and then form burgers, flouring the top and bottom of each one and placing on the cookie sheet. Once all are on the sheet spray the tops and bake in oven on bottom rack for 10 -15 minutes a side. you can cook these in a pan with a little oil (that is what the original recipe suggests). I just get tired of having to cook them in batches and so the baking seemed to work and they were all done at the same time. Put in the bun and top with your favourite fixings, we had fried onions, pickles, tomatoes, mayonnaise and mustard - yum!

1 bunch of asparagus
juice of 1/2 lemon
olive oil
salt and pepper

Wash and break the ends off of the asparagus. Place in a oven proof dish, squeeze over lemon juice, drizzle with olive oil, season with salt and pepper and bake in the oven for 8 -10 minutes - until tender.

Curried Quinoa with Cauliflower, Almonds and Dried Apricots
Wednesdays are always so relaxing because we don't have to get out the door right away. Today started off no different, it did end quite differently. Dave worked late tonight and by the end of the evening I may have given Harper away if anyone had offered...I would have made sure they were nice and all...O.K I would have never giver her away, but I may have paused at the offer and thought about it for a moment or two before saying no.

It always takes me time to recognize and adjust to each new phase that my children enter. The past little while Harper has been an emotional mess come four o'clock, swinging from one end of the spectrum to the other. I thought that she may be tired or hungry but I think that it's a communication thing. Imagine if every fourth word you said you had to repeat four or five times before someone understood you. I'm quite certain, actually I know, I would go insane - I hate repeating myself! Sometimes we never understand her and just try and distract her, how maddening would that be? Well, until you were distracted and forgot all about it. I wonder if she ever comes back to those moments and thinks, "I was going to ask for some cheese but, something happened...now what was it?"  Anyway, I am vowing to be more patient with her and try to remember all the frustrations she faces in a day.

Recipe
This is not my recipe but I'm not sure where it comes from exactly. I got it from my aunt and uncle who come and visit every summer. They made it last time they were here.  I've never cooked quinoa before and came across this recipe and seemed to remember loving it. I remembered right and it's even better the next day!

2 Tbsp curry powder
1/2 tsp cumin

1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
1/3 cup canola oil
1/4 cup orange juice
1 Tbsp fresh ginger, grated
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups cooked quinoa, follow package directions
1/2 cup thinly sliced dried apricots
3 green onions
2 stalks celery thinly sliced
1 cup cauliflower florets, chopped
1/2 cup slivered almonds, toasted
1/4 cup cilantro, finely chopped

Mix curry, cumin, vinegar, oil, orange juice, ginger, salt in a serving bowl. Add all other ingredients and mix until combined.

Egg Drop Soup with Shitake Mushrooms and Edamame Beans (on the side)
I have to tell you I'm not sure what has happened to me this year in regards to shoveling the snow. I will fully admit that before this year I never shovelled the snow, Dave always did it. Last year it was too hard with Harper so little, of course I could have done it once Dave got home but he always did it. This year, I think that I did most if the shovelling. The girls were the right age to play outside and so it was easy to get it done during the day. It turned into this obsession of mine, I was addicted to scraping it down to the pavement. Usually come January it's so cold (and Dave would be so busy at work) we would just start driving over it to pack it down but this year that didn't happen until at least the middle of February. Now my new obsession is the snow on the deck in the backyard. I make fun of people who shovel the snow off their lawn in the spring (sorry, I do!) and now I'm a total hypocrite because that is precisely what I did this afternoon. The girls played in the backyard and I shovelled the snow off the deck (well some of it) and I'm itching to get out there and finish tomorrow, go figure!

Recipe
This recipe is from a locally produced egg booklet from the Manitoba Egg Farmers. The girls loved it, I enjoyed it but am not sure if it's going to make the regular rotation and Dave worked late so I'm not really sure. I think this is also the first time I've ever had egg drop soup so it's possible that this particular soup is just not to my taste.

6 cups low-sodium veggie stock
6 shitake mushrooms, stems removed, thinly sliced
1 Tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
Dash of finely ground white pepper
1/2 cup thinly sliced green onions
3 eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 cup fresh baby spinach

In a medium saucepan, bring the stock to a simmer. Add mushrooms, soy sauce, white pepper and half the green onions. Return to a low simmer and cook for 3 minutes. Stirring with a fork, gradually add the eggs in a slow, steady stream. Add the spinach. Cook until the eggs are set, stirring to create shreds or ribbons of the eggs, for about 1 minute. Remove saucepan from heat. Ladle soup into bowls and garnish with remaining onions. Serve immediately.

We also steamed some edamame beans and had them on the side.

Falafel 
As we were walking back to the parking lot from the store today, Hannah said to me (with a very dramatic sigh), "I hate waving to strangers!" I asked her what made her think of that, did someone wave to her? She told me that there was a lady in the store on the way out that waved to her and she didn't like to wave to people she didn't know. I thought about this, it's a fair sentiment. Why is it that we treat children differently than we do adults? I'm quite certain that the woman would not have waved to me because that would have been a little odd. On the other hand, she was just trying to be friendly and make a child smile, what's wrong with that? I thought about it on the way back to the car because I don't want my children to be rude (by not returning a friendly gesture), but I do want them to be a little wary of strangers and be encouraged to trust their gut when something doesn't feel quite right. After thinking about all of this for a few minutes, feeling like this was a major learning moment, I said to Hannah, "You know, you don't have to wave back to someone if it doesn't feel right to you." She looked at me kind of funny and very matter of factly said, "I know, I didn't wave back to her."

Recipe
This recipe is good, the kids loved them and both went back for more falafel and sauce after they were done their pitas. I did alter the recipe slightly, you're suppose to deep fry the little falafel balls and I just couldn't do it so I baked mine and they turned out very yummy and flavourful, although I'm sure they are delicious if you deep fry them. Also, traditionally you eat these with a little Tahini sauce but I thought I had some and then didn't and so I made a little yogurt sauce instead which was really good. The recipe is from epicurious.

1 19 oz can of chickpeas, rinsed and drained

1/2 large red onion, roughly chopped (about 1 cup)

1/4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley

1/4 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro

1 teaspoon salt

4 cloves of garlic

1 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon baking powder

8-10 tablespoons flour

olive oil spray

Chopped tomato

Chopped cucumber

Diced red onion 

Diced red bell pepper

Baby spinach

Chopped cilantro

1 cup thick plain yogurt

1/2 lemon, juice of

2 small cloves garlic, pressed

1/2 tsp salt

Pita bread

Preheat oven to 450F

Place chickpeas and the onions in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Add the parsley, cilantro, salt, garlic, and cumin. Process until blended but not pureed. Sprinkle in the baking powder and 8 tablespoons of the flour, and pulse. You want to add enough flour so that the dough forms a small ball and no longer sticks to your hands. Turn into a bowl and refrigerate, covered, for several hours.

Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and spray well with olive oil. Form the chickpea mixture into small balls and then flatten slightly into a disk and place on cookie sheet. Once all are on sheet spray the tops with olive oil. Bake for 10 minutes a side.

While they bake, mix together yogurt, lemon juice, salt, garlic and set a side.

Serve in warm pitas with all your chopped fixings and topped with yogurt sauce.

Pizza (we ordered in), Salad, Chocolate Cake with Kahlua Whip Cream and Ice Cream

We bought a  new vehicle today. It's very funny because this is the second vehicle that we have bought together, the first since we have had kids. The first vehicle we bought was small, light in colour (inside and out) with a pretty small trunk - what did it matter it was just us? This one is larger and has a dark interior (which is a must with little ones), has lots of  storage and what excited us the most is, the back seats flip up to become booster seats, times have changed!

Recipe

I actually don't have any dinner recipes for you tonight. We ordered pizza, my cousin brought a salad which was really good - it had blueberries, spinach, pea pods, grape tomatoes, roasted soy nuts and sunflower seeds, and then I made a cake - it was for a birthday. I was looking online for a chocolate cake recipe and was having trouble choosing when I came across this recipe for Chocolate Truffle Cake or From the Bottom of My Heart Cake from Shoots and Roots. She tells the story about how once her mom's friend helped her mom cut their lawn in the backyard that was three ft. high. To thank her she made her this cake and ever since in their family they make this cake as a thank you to anyone who goes above and beyond.

(The original recipe was the Chocolate Truffle Cake from the Better Homes & Gardens Cookbook)

Crust

1 cup pecans toasted and coarsely ground

1 cup graham cracker crumbs

2 tablespoons sugar

1/4 cup butter, melted

Filling

1 cup whipping cream

Two 8oz packages of semisweet chocolate chips or 16 oz of other high quality semisweet or dark chocolate, cut up

6 eggs

3/4 cup sugar

1/3 cup all-purpose flour

To make the crust stir the crust ingredients together in a bowl until well mixed. Lightly grease the bottom and sides of a 9 inch spring form pan with butter and press the crust into the bottom. Set aside.

Warm the whipping cream in a double boiler over low heat. Add the chocolate and stir gently until the chocolate is completely melted and combined with the whipping cream. It should look smooth as silk. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool.

Preheat the oven to 325F. Add the eggs, sugar, and flour to a large mixing bowl and beat together with a mixer for ten minutes. It will change color and texture becoming a thick and smooth pale lemon yellow.

Fold 1/4 of the egg mixture into the chocolate then fold all the chocolate into the egg mixture. Folding them together this way helps retain the air we spent ten minutes whipping into the eggs while also bringing the temperature of the warm chocolate and cool eggs closer together. Pour into your prepared pan. 

Bake at 325F for about 45 minutes. The edges and halfway to the center should be puffed up. The center should be slightly soft and jiggly.  Cool in the pan on a wire rack for 20 minutes.  Remove the sides of the pan and let cool until room temperature before moving to the fridge for a minimum of 4 hours. Serve with whipped cream. Store leftovers covered and in the refrigerator.

I served the cake with a little ice cream and whipping cream. I added a little Kahlua to the whip cream for the adults.

BBQ Salmon, Sauteed Peppers, Onions and Asparagus, Ziti Salad, Spinach and Strawberry Salad and Leftover Chocolate Cake
I went to a wedding shower today and you should have seen the food. It was incredible, not your typical dainty sandwiches that I'm use to (and absolutely love) but mountains of perogies, meatballs, potatoes, salads with two full tables of desserts. It made me wonder, is there really anything better than a perogy? I remember when I worked for the Winnipeg Folk Festival and Jackie Green's manager came into the office and asked, "What were those things we had for supper?" I told him they were perogies and he declared they were the best thing he's ever tasted, I believed him. There is something so comforting and delicious about perogies and I'm not even Ukrainian. I think that I need to put them on the menu for next Friday's dinner. I may even make them myself - let me know if you have a really great recipe.

I keep meaning to bring my camera to Sunday dinner and take pictures of the lovely meals but keep forgetting. I must try and remember for next Sunday.

I wish you all a happy week!