Quinoa, Keen-What?

I have read about, heard about, talked with people about, and cooked with quinoa a lot more lately which has given me the idea that quinoa is the newest addition to the healthy food craze.

What is Quinoa?

Pronounced 'keen wah', Quinoa is a superfood containing a perfect balance of all eight essential amino acids. It is gluten-free and a great source of protein. Most commonly considered a grain, quinoa is actually a relative of leafy green vegetables like spinach and Swiss chard.

As you can see from the pictures above, quinoa kind of looks like couscous or a very small type of rice. It is fluffy, kind of crunchy and has a touch of a nutty flavor when cooked.

So anything that is this healthy doesn't sound like it would taste good right?

I Tried It And....

It is SO easy to prepare! Follow the directions on the back of the bag: add X amount of dry quinoa to X amount of boiling water) and simmer for 10 min and let sit covered for another 5. Fluff & Serve.

The one problem I did have with the directions was that it tells you to rinse the quinoa before cooking it. Rinsing gets rid of the natural coating called saponin that can have a bitter taste. The first time I prepared it, i tried to rinse first, but the grains are SO small even my strainer couldn't keep the seeds from falling through. So I don't rinse anymore, and to me, it tastes the same. I looked online and if you do want to rinse, maybe try a coffee filter or something that will let the water go through but won't let your quinoa through at the same time.

I have also discovered that quinoa can live in the fridge for up to a week and taste fresh. Just make sure that it is in a sealed container.

So, What Do I Do With It?

Another great thing about Quinoa is that it is SO versatile. I had it in my salad at lunch with some baby spinach, peppers, cucumbers, carrots, tomatoes and a homemade lime dressing. I have made it as a salad on it's own where I made a lemon juice dressing and tossed the quinoa and then added feta cheese and veggies chopped really small, great for a summer bbq. I have used quinoa as a substitute for rice in recipes, I have made quinoa casserole, which actually turned out great.

The best thing about quinoa is that it's flavor does not overpower the foods that you serve it with, it really fills you up and a little goes a long way!

Where Do I Find Quinoa?

I had to scour the grocery store to find quinoa. I looked down the pasta aisle, down the rice aisle and even looked in the international food section, with no luck. I finally found quinoa in the health food section. It was stocked in the last aisle and was with couscous and other grains. Unfortunately there was only one brand of quinoa and it was not cheap, $5.50 for a relatively small bag. The good thing is that you don't need much to add to any recipe so I have had 3 or 4 meals from the one bag and still have more!

Overall, I am surprised that so few people know about quinoa. For those who have wheat allergies, or who are trying to eat healthier or even for the adventurous eater, quinoa is a definite try.

Who knows. You may just fall in love with it like I did. :)

A Few Food Thoughts From My Weekend

Super Bowl weekend sabataged my healthy eating plan. I can't blame it on the super bowl though, but it did provide a good excuse to have loaded nachos and breaded chicken wings last night!

I did discover a few yummy healthy things this weekend though:

• Asian Lettuce Wraps - like any other wrap, but instead of a tortilla, you wrap the filling with lettuce leaves. Had this at the superbowl celebration and was GLAD I ordered it. The filling was chicken, spring onion, carrot & veggies all cooked up with some sort of asian sauce. I think I may attempt my own version at home. I have seen lettuce at the grocery store that has big leafs just for wrapping. :)


• Oatmeal Date Muffin - I went to a cute little coffee shop on Saturday afternoon and tried one of their Oatmeal Date scones. It was delicious and I was inspired to make something a little bit more hearty and breakfast friendly. I googled an oatmeal muffin recipe and added some dates and was impressed at how filling and delicious these muffins are for breakfast. Pair with a cup of coffee (with my new love, soy milk) and some fresh grapes and you have a breaky to fuel you through til lunch!

Did all of you watch the Super Bowl? Did anyone else get tripped up by all the not-so-good-for-you, but oh-so-yummy snacks?

Let me know if you try Quinoa. I just wanted to spread the word about this amazing, versatile food!

Happy Monday!

- C