Heather's Quinoa Spinach Salad

My friend Heather taught a healthy eating class for one of our Relief Society activity cooking segments a couple months ago. She made this salad but in the craziness of the evening (Chris was working so I had the kids and I was of course helping Heather with the demonstrations on how to make everything) I didn't have a chance to try it. I made it last week and I am in love. It is seriously so darn yummy that I had it as a side at three different dinners last week.

Heather's Quinoa Spinach Salad

big bunch / bag of spinach
1 cup uncooked quinoa (with 2 cups water to cook it)
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup almonds, chopped, slivered or sliced
2 green onions, finely chopped

Dressing:
3 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp orange juice
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tbsp real maple syrup
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper

Cook the quinoa and let it cool.
Once the quinoa is cooled combine it with the rest of the salad ingredients in a large bowl.
Combine dressing ingredients and pour on top.

*Note: As I knew we weren't going to be eating a big salad I just threw some spinach, quinoa, cranberries, almonds and onions in to a bowl (I just went with what looked good as far as the amounts of each) and then poured some of the dressing on top. Then the next day I did the same thing. The dressing recipe ended up being enough for me to make salads for 3 different meals, and it was perfect because the salad was nice and fresh each day instead of being soggy if I'd tried to eat it as left overs.

Enjoy!

Grilled Red Peppers

Another BBQ recipe. We had steak for Father's Day and Chris's birthday and of course needed potatoes and then wanted a veggie and since I love red peppers I came up with this. That'll explain the last two posts;)

Grilled Red Peppers

red peppers, seeded and cut into large chunks

olive oil

Montreal Steak seasoning (or whatever seasoning you'd like)

Seed and cut red peppers and place in a ziploc bag along with the olive oil and Montreal Steak seasoning. Rub till the peppers are covered in the oil and seasoning. Using a basket or barbeque griddle. Make sure to watch these carefully as they don't take very long to cook on each side (probably about 5 mins on low).

*Note: You might want to experiment with how much of the seasoning to use, depending on your tastes. I would recommend starting off lightly the first time and then adding more the next time you make them if you'd like. I've made them twice and thought the seasoning was perfect both times.

Enjoy!

Red potatoes on the BBQ

Can you tell we BBQ a lot in the summer? Or that I love potatoes?

These are super duper easy and of course delicious...sorry I say that a lot!

Red Potatoes on the BBQ

red potatoes, washed and sliced

onions, sliced

butter or margarine

rosemary garlic spice

salt

Slice the potatoes and onions and layer in a large piece of tin foil sprayed with PAM. Put pieces of butter on the potatoes and sprinkle with the rosemary garlic spice (or whatever spices you'd like) and salt. Fold up the tin foil and BBQ (of course turning sides) till done.

Serve with a dollop of sour cream.

Serve with steak, chicken, etc.

Enjoy!

Chris's Grilled Potatoes and Veggies

Chris has a lot of specialties, but his grilled potatoes and veggies are definitely one of MY favourites! Beware that this is another one of those recipes that is not exact as far as amounts or measurements.









Grilled Potatoes and Veggies
potatoes, washed and cut
large red onion, cut
red, yellow, orange peppers, washed, seeded and cut
zucchini / Italian squash, washed and cut
olive oil/oil
seasonings as desired: rosemary garlic, salt, pepper, etc.

Combine veggies in a bowl with olive oil and seasonings. Put potatoes on a barbeque griddle and cook, flipping as needed to prevent burning. Once the potatoes start to soften, add the veggies and cook together till done.

Serve with BBQ chicken or steak, with a nice dollop of sour cream on the potatoes and veggies of course!

*Note: You can also bake these in the oven at 400 degrees till tender. Start with the potatoes, then add the veggies when the potatoes start to soften.

Enjoy!

Yummy Cheeseball

This recipe is from dear Sister Banks (her hubby was in our Single's ward bishopric). I had it and knew Chris would love it so got the recipe just before he came home from Iraq and we've been making it ever since. It's been a while since we've had it and he decided he needed to make it last night, so here's the recipe for you all!






Yummy Cheese Ball courtesy of Sister Ann Banks
2 pks cream cheese (softened at room temp)
4 oz (1 small jar) Old English Sharp cheese
1 cup grated mild cheddar cheese
1 tbsp parsley
2 tbsp Mayo (not Miracle Whip)
1/2 tsp onion salt
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 cup chopped pecans

Mix all ingredients (except the pecans) together. Roll into a ball in waxed paper and let set in fridge for approximately 3 hours.

Once the cheeseball is set roll it in the chopped pecans. (To do this we place the chopped pecans in a medium sized tupperware container [the one we use is 6 cups and is kind of a cylinder shape with a rounded bottom]. Then remove the cheeseball from the waxed paper and place it in the tupperware container, put the lid on and gently shake the container until the cheeseball is covered in the pecans.)

Move to a serving plate and serve with your favourite crackers.

*Note: This recipe can easily be cut in half!

*Note: You can switch the onion salt for onion powder and the garlic powder for garlic salt, just make sure not to use both onion salt and garlic salt as the cheeseball will be far too salty! If you're trying to cut out salt then use both onion powder and garlic powder.

Enjoy!

Homemade Flour Tortillas

These homemade flour tortillas are very easy to make and are extremely yummy. They're nice and soft and are great as soft taco's, burrito's, with the Cafe Rio recipes, or with yummy refried beans, etc. I haven't tried frying them (Chimichanga's or Taquito's) because they're just so nice to eat fresh out of the pan...just ask Chris, he loves to eat them with a little butter or salt on them!

Homemade Flour Tortillas
2 cups of white flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. vegetable oil
3/4 cup warm water

Combine the flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl. In another bowl combine the warm water and oil. Add the water/oil mixture to the flour mixture, one tablespoon at a time and mix the dough with a fork. Once the water is mixed in, add another tablespoon of water and repeat the process until all the water is mixed into the dough. *Note: The dough will be sticky.

Lightly flour a cutting board and knead the dough for about 5 mins, adding a dusting of flour when the dough gets sticky or sticks to the cutting board. Eventually the stickiness will go away and you will have a nice smooth dough.

Place the dough back into the bowl and cover it with a damp towel or damp paper towel. Let the dough rest for 20 minutes.

Divide the dough into golf-ball-size balls by pinching off the dough with your thumb and fore finger. Form each ball into a nice ball shape.

*Note: This recipe makes approximately 10, 6-7 inch tortillas. If you want larger tortillas, divide the dough into 6-7 balls.

Place the balls on a flat dish making sure they don't touch each other and cover with the damp cloth. Let the dough rest again for 10 minutes.

Preheat a skillet or cast iron pan on medium high heat. Lightly dust your cutting board with flour. Take one of the balls of dough and flatten it out on the cutting board to a 4 inch circle. Rub flour on your rolling pin and begin to roll out the dough starting from the center out. Roll the tortilla until it is 6 or 7 inches in diameter and about 1/8 inch thick.

* Note: It's difficult to roll out a perfectly round tortilla so if that is important to you, you can always trim the tortilla with a knife.

Once you have rolled out the tortilla, place it on a preheated skillet. You don't need to add any oil or butter. Cook the tortilla for about 30 seconds. You will notice brown spots all over your tortilla. Flip it over and cook an additional 30 seconds. Don't over cook it as you want the tortilla to be nice and soft. Keep your tortillas warm by covering them with a towel on a plate or in a tortilla warmer.

* Note: Tortillas are best eaten hot right off the pan, but you can make them ahead and then keep them in the tortilla warmer until you're ready to eat and they stay nice and soft and fresh. I usually make them about an hour ahead and then keep the tortilla warmer in a warm oven.

* Note: They also refrigerate and freeze well. If you refrigerate them, wrap them in foil and place them in a 250 degree oven for 10-15 mins. If you freeze the tortillas, wrap them tightly in plastic wrap and put them in a ziplock bag. When you are ready to use them, first thaw them at room temperature and then wrap them in the foil and place them in a 250 degree oven for a 10 to 15 minutes. Microwaving them is not recommended as it tends to toughen them.