toi quinoa recipes

QUINOA.

Pronounced  ...  KEEN-wah...

 but then some SWEAR I should be saying it qwi-NO-uh.

My dictionary says both are correct.

A quick google on the internet brought as many debates over it's pronunciation as it did recipes.

Insert logical me:  THAT is stoopid. (quoting a not famous but dear nephew)

It is a grain.  High and protein, credited for helping stave off starvation in Africa.

It is a healthy choice.

Forget how to say it, cuz half of the people you are talking to about it will either have their own opinion about it and assume you are wrong, or assume you know what you are talking about because they have no idea themselves.

I say it KEEN-wah, more of a KEN-wah, cuz that is what the front of the bag said, and I got into a habit.
There is my logic. 
Anymore discussion and I will throw the stuff out and call it a stupid yuppy fad and of no value unless trying to set status among friends...urgh.



I am trying to use an entire bag of Quinoa, and maybe find some new nutritious item to integrate to slowly make my life healthier.  I have tried a recipe from www.tastykitchen.com, Yummy Honey Quinoa bread 
and I thought it was quite good.  I made the bread this week, and used all whole wheat flour instead of bread flour, and although it was yum, I wouldn't recommend making more than a loaf at a time because it is so heavy and dense with all the whole wheat, after day one or two it was like trying to slice a rock.  Great fresh, and love the quinoa texture.

I am going to try Fried Rice Quinoa next, it is a recipe I got from a fellow member at tasty kitchen, and it sounds pretty good, just a LITTLE out of the comfort range, but now that I have made it I can see how this recipe could be yummers.

Third is from an email from my seester.  It is a recipe they featured on The Biggest Loser Couples.  I couldn't find a link for the recipe, but found the recipe all over the internet.  I am NOT claiming this as MY recipe, just as  .... ALI VINCENT’S MANGO QUINOA SALAD.  The mango has me a little nervous.  I am not such an exotic woman I guess...



ALI VINCENT'S MANGO QUINOA SALAD
“A protein-loaded treat!” – Ali Vincent



Makes 6 servings

Ingredients



2 cups cooked red quinoa (at room temperature or cold)



1 diced mango



1 handful chopped cilantro



1 15-ounce can black beans



1 red bell pepper, chopped



6 green onions, thinly sliced



4 tablespoons red wine vinegar



3 tablespoons olive oil



1 tablespoon fresh lime juice



Instructions



In a small bowl, combine vinegar, oil and lime juice. Combine everything else in a big bowl. Drizzle liquid mixture over the salad, and toss until well combined. Chill for about an hour.



Nutritional information (per serving)



Calories: 240



Total fat: 8 grams



Saturated fat: 1 gram



Cholesterol: 0 milligrams



Sodium: 10 milligrams



Total carbohydrates: 34 grams



Fiber: 7 grams



Sugars: 9 grams



Protein: 7 grams



Moving mountains....

So the dh is finishing up the semester, commissioning to be an officer in the US Army in the Armor corps, and now I have to start thinking about moving in a few months. YUK.

I went out to my garage, where the true horror lies.

I tried. 

I really tried.

  I found bad bad things.  And lots of projects and things I am not willing to give up, and things that belonged to my Grandma, and things my Grandfather made for my Mom.  Not junk.  What to do with it all ?!

My solution was to go make bread with  my five year old.

Honey whole wheat quinoa bread.

YUM.

And then...I disturbed the pile and somehow it exploded....and pieces landed all over my house.

Tonight I sort, and ready a big ol truck load of stuff to donate.  Especially since I found a rather large-ish sized box that had been mislabeled.  It was laundry.  Wash, fold, donate.

Pray for me?

Easter

I take Easter pretty seriously.

This year I get to take it seriously...seriously cheap that is.

It happens.  (sigh)  And it never happens at a good time...so whatever.

Well I have a ham in the freezer so most of dinner is taken care of.  I just have to decide what to do with it, and what to go with it.

I am thinking glazed carrots, and BYU - I catering salad ( I don't know what else to call it).

Don't knock the name, it is yum.  Really, YUM.

I have been hounding a friend of min on fb for the recipe since her husband is a chef at BYU-I and has the recipe, but alas, she doesn't do fb a whole lot.  So I googled it and walah!  Someone had posted the recipe on THEIR blog.  So I am too. 

Disclaimer, this is NOT my recipe, and I don't know where it came from.  I just know that I love to go to  BYU-I catered even that has THIS salad as a side.  Amen.

BYU-IDAHO Salad

Poppy Seed Dressing

¾ T. Poppy Seeds ¾ t. salt

¾ Cup oil 2 T. prepared mustard

1/3 cup white vinegar

1/3 cup sugar

Mix and serve over salad.



Spinach Salad

1 head lettuce ½ lb. bacon cooked and crumbled

1 bunch spinach 1 cup mandarin oranges

¾ lb. sliced mushrooms ½ cup slivered almonds

¾ lb. grated Swiss cheese 3 T. sugar

1 red onion, sliced

Cook sugar and almonds together over low heat to caramelize. Mix lettuce,

Spinach, mushrooms, cheese and onion together. Spread bacon, oranges & almonds on top. Serve with poppy seed dressing.
 
 
I will be adding pictures.  They will be amazing.  Just kidding, they will probably be point and shoot quickies with no editing because I don't know how.  Also my dining room gets little natural light, and I am hoping that it will be devoured quickly and I won't have time for a bright alluring photo.  Well not  hoping, but expecting, because time...moves faster than I do.
 
Next...what to do with the ham...the recipe for glazed carrots, and what amazing wonderful Martha-esque dessert can I come up with that will blow the families socks off!? ( and divert their attention away from the scrawny Easter baskets)

 
(pics are from Easter 2010)

get out!

72 hour kit..

bug out bag...

What ever you want to call them, they are a form of personal and family preparation we should all consider.

I haven't much.

1. I am married to a firefighter
2. I am married to a mechanic
3. I am married to an EMT
4. I am married to an Epidemiologist
5. I am married to a construction worker
6. I am married to a farm worker
7. I am married to a hunter
8. I am married to a (get this) Nuclear Reactor operator
9. I am married to an avid camper and outdoors man
10. I am married to a soldier and former professor of military science

Stop there.

I am married to one person, and am on my first and only marriage.

I just happen to be married to a guy that has done a lot of super handy things in his life, and I have always felt pretty secure in our ability to "take care of business" when it comes to facing disasters or crisis in general.  But can I back up a little bit to #10? 

thank you...

10.  I am married to a soldier

Aside from the first years of our marriage when the dh was in the Navy, he has spent a lot of time serving either in the National Guard or the Army Reserves, depending on our geographic location.

Who do they call in times of disaster?  Uh yeah ... him.

Forest fires?  He's got your back.

Hurricane Katrina?  He'll be there as soon as his speed governed fire truck can get from Idaho to New Orleans.  Sorry it wasn't faster folks.

Iraq?  sure, why not?

Here is my point.  He is the handiest guy in the universe with an awesome education on disasters and all kinds of real life stuff that makes him all around a FEMA dream.

But when it hits the fan he is gone.

G.O.N.E

as in not here, and I am alone to do it all.

Up until about well...

NOW,

it hasn't been that big of a deal.  I have had family close by for years, even if they are a few hours away, I could still get to them in an emergency.  Even now that we are 6 hours away from my family we aren't all that on our own, and we are in our element.  But change is in the wind for us.

Wind.  Gale.  Hurricane.

I would prefer mild summer zephyr?

My husband is about to commission as an officer in the U.S. Army Armor Corps.

Full time.

The real deal.

Have to pay for all that schooling and it all kind of is tied together somehow.

So he is leaving.

And will continue to leave.

And he is going to take all of his knowledge and skills, and STUFF

with him. 

That leaves me. 

And four kids (5-16)

and it won't be a matter of jumping into the car and driving to my Dad's place for a safe harbor anymore.

It will be me and the kids.

Living in wherever.

Alone.

Now granted we will have people from church wherever we go, it will just depend on our station on how concentrated those people are.  That IS a comfort.

But I guess what I am saying is it has come to my attention that my preparedness for this family is NOT any ones  responsibility (see Katrina and the aftermath and how there were lots of fingers pointing and not a large amount of news regarding  personal accountability).

It is up to myself, and my husband as he can to ready our family in case of an emergency.

I am NOT a doomsdayer.  I am NOT a survivalist.

However I do have it in my ability to prepare for some of this crud that seems to be running rampant lately around the world.  I don't know if it is just escalation, or communication that it seems to be so prevalent lately.  I don't have all the answers there.  But wherever a person may live they can prepare a little to enable a more positive outcome in a disaster.

Enter the 72 hour kit.

Ours is currently in a room that was the third bay in the garage of the home we rent.  It's great.  It keeps all the military stuff out of my way for the most part, and my food storage in a safe clean spot and away from pests (aside from my 16 year old).  I could live in this house for quite some time and be just fine.

But if I was on my own, and I will be,and something emergent occurs I have FINALLY

come to see the necessity of having something light weight, and full of essentials in case of the need to

.. BUG OUT.

Sorry that term makes me laugh.

I am now on the prowl as to what makes a good 72 hour kit.

So far lots of commercial and pre - made products,

and some fun blogs, some make my head hurt as to the level of

camo wearing, and gun toting that they are bringing into play.

I want to feed, shelter, clothe, and medically treat my family until help arrives or can be secured.

Ideas?  I would love good websites to look at....

raisin funds...

The kids at church had an auction.  The proceeds went to help raise money for their summer activities, and other things that keep popping up that seem to cost a fortune.

All the kids were supposed to donate, and I pitched in a little and made some hair bows.

They were out of scrappy fabric and were really cute.

The hair bow above was cuter than the picture, it had a vitangy shabby feel for it, and I would have worn it with no problem.  It sold for $8.00.  Ok, not an astounding amount, but about what retail would have been.

Then there was THIS one, it was so cute and so vibrant, and I threw in a $8.00 beanie because I bought it for Olivia and it was too small so what the heck.  I thought for SURE that would be the eye catcher.

$7.00 (ouch)

 

Along comes this number.  A yellow daisy I had at the bottom of my bag mixed with other scraps.  It was cute, but of almost no creative investment or monetary investment on my part, just something I literally just threw together.

It brought in $31.00

Really.

Blink blink...

cha ching for the kids anyway!

over the top hair bows...

I got really busy with packing for our trip to San Diego I didn't get around to finishing hair bows for Olivia's outfits, so I packed them up (much to the husband's disbelief)...

And made some honkin big hair bows...the hot pink and green set she never did wear, as we did a lot more "beach time" than planned.  (Not a bad thing) They are made to match Gymboree's "Little Lady Line"

The

The yellow orange black red hotpink mess matches Gymboree's "Fiesta Del Sol" from a few years back.  She did get to wear these though...

We were in Old Town San Diego and a mariachi musician told Chris (in Spanish, so I only caught bits and peices), that my daughter was very pretty.  That she was dressed in the colors of the sun.

The color of life.

I agree. 

Do's and Don'ts of Carmels...

Do NOT use a pan with a ridge at the corners (will make a mess)

 DO use one with a good square edge.  Nice and neat!

 Also look for a good wooden spatula to stir with.  One with square corners, good for  keeping sugar from BURNING in the corners or crystallizing.  That also is BAD.

 Use a candy thermometer.  They are cheap and TRUST me, will save you ruining good fresh yummy ingredients. sob.

 Stir.  A lot. 

Do NOT allow your Mom to leave the room if you have never made caramel before.  It will end badly.  Badly as in I think the horses have a new lick in the coral about now.  It was bad.  That is NOT steam puffing up with the bubbles burst.  I burnt it in seconds, apparently I had the heat up too high.  This project called  for a definite do over.  So glad some things in life allow do overs!

Didn't bother posting the recipe or the cast of characters (they didn't make it anyway).  Will try again next time... Too bad everything can't be a success every time!