Pumpkin Pie Quinoa Parfaits and Baked Pumpkin Donuts

I finally got into my first can of pumpkin for the season and also used my donut pan for the first time. I had some cooked quinoa in the fridge and saw this fun idea for a Pumpkin Pie Quinoa Parfait. I've tried other recipes that use quinoa in a non-savory breakfast way and this was a great one. Very original and a great way to change up the humdrum of your normal breakfast, snack or dessert.

I also saw this recipe for Baked Pumpkin Donuts that uses melted ice cream in the batter. I had just the perfect amount of leftover vanilla ice cream in my freezer from a recent birthday and whipped these up just in time for my husband to take them to work with him in the morning. I didn't get to try one, but my kids really enjoyed the mini donuts!

Here is the recipe for Pumpkin Pie Quinoa Parfaits
* I used plain nonfat greek yogurt and added a little bit of pure maple syrup
* I used less graham crackers crumbs than called for
* I topped it off with some crumbled pecan nut clusters

Here is the recipe for Baked Pumpkin Ice Cream Glazed Donuts

Baked Quinoa Patties

I saw this recipe for Baked Quinoa Patties on 101 Cookbooks and wrote it into my meal plan as soon as possible. Our family loves quinoa and this was a fun way to eat it. These patties have kale in them and some herbs which give the nice flecks of green. I love that these are baked in the oven and they still get nice and crispy.

I roasted some broccolini, asparagus, and green beans in the oven also and we had a delicious dinner.

Here is the recipe for Baked Quinoa Patties

BLT (Bacon, Lemon & Tomato) Quinoa Salad and Lemon-Cornmeal Cookies

This recipe popped up on facebook the other day and I figured it would be a good meal for dinner on a Monday night. I happened to have everything on hand that I needed for the recipe and that made it a lot less stressful to get dinner on the table.

My dad loves a good BLT sandwich and he grows tomatoes in his garden, so BLT's were always a lunch staple of his in the summer. I personally didn't really like bacon or mayo (I still don't) back then, so I always just watched my dad put these sandwiches together and remember hearing about how good they were.

This salad is really good and the interesting thing is that it really tastes like a BLT. Somehow, the combination of the ingredients, makes you feel like you are eating a sandwich. I know that is crazy, but it's true. In this salad, the lettuce has been switched out to lemon, which adds a brightness to the salad, in color and flavor. I added black beans for fun and roasted some broccoli in the oven to round out our dinner.

That same night we still had lots of lemons and the kids wanted me to make a quick cookie. I found this one on myrecipes and decided it would be easy to throw them together at the last minute. My kids really liked these. They reminded us of these Cornmeal Lime Cookies in taste and texture.

Here is the recipe for BLT Quinoa Salad
* I cooked my quinoa in chicken broth to add more flavor
* I added drained, rinsed black beans
* I tossed my salad with a little bit of olive oil, along with the lemon juice and vinegar

Here is the recipe for Lemon-Cornmeal Cookies
* I added the juice of 1 lemon to the cookie dough, after mixing in the flour mixture

Feta-Watermelon Tabbouleh

I found the perfect Tabbouleh recipe last year and haven't really wanted to try another one since. Until, I saw a Tabbouleh recipe that had watermelon in it. Watermelon is my favorite food. I usually don't do anything to it, because I just want to eat it the way it is. But, last summer I tried a delicious watermelon salad that absolutely converted me to combining watermelon with savory ingredients like feta cheese. And dressing it with olive oil mixtures.

I decided I wanted to make this particular Tabbouleh with quinoa instead of bulgur, because I had quinoa on hand and I wanted to make a big batch of it to use with other ingredients as well.
It worked. I think bulgur has more of a bite/crunch to it, but the quinoa was really good in this salad.

Overall, I really liked the combination of flavors and thought this was a great take on Tabbouleh. This would be a great side for a summer dinner, or a main dish for that watermelon lover that might be out there in your midst.

Here is the recipe for Feta- Watermelon Tabbouleh from Everyday with Rachael Ray Magazine
* I used quinoa instead of bulgur- I cooked one cup of quinoa in 2 1/4 cups water for 15 minutes and then used half of that in this tabbouleh

Quinoa and Parsley Salad

I enjoy eating salad, but I find that I need lots of variety with my salads so that I don't get bored.
This salad was just about perfect in every way. Quinoa is the star of the show, or in this case, the star of the salad. Celery adds a nice crunch, as do the pepitas. The dried apricots add just the perfect amount of chewiness and sweet. I actually omitted the honey from the dressing because of the dried apricots. If there is one thing I can't handle in a salad, it is too much sweetness. I prefer the savory-ness to win out. There is lots of parsley, which adds so much freshness and flavor. Green onions add a little bit of spice/heat.
The dressing is nice and simple, just the way I like it- olive oil, fresh lemon juice, salt and pepper.

I actually served this over romaine and it was a great combination. The next day I fried an egg in a tiny amount of olive oil and had it with the leftovers. Delicious.

I also shared this recipe with my mom a couple of weeks ago when she called to ask me for some meal ideas and she report back that they loved it too!
Recipe for Quinoa and Parsley Salad

• 1 cup water
• 1/2 cup uncooked quinoa
• 3/4 cup fresh parsley leaves
• 1/2 cup thinly sliced celery
• 1/2 cup thinly sliced green onions
• 1/2 cup finely chopped dried apricots
• 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/4 cup unsalted pumpkinseed kernels, toasted

Preparation

1. 1. Bring water and quinoa to a boil in a medium saucepan. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes or until liquid is absorbed. Spoon into a bowl; fluff with a fork. Add parsley, celery, onions, and apricots.
2. 2. Whisk lemon juice, olive oil, honey, salt, and black pepper. Add to quinoa mixture, and toss well. Top with seeds.

* I omitted the honey from the dressing
* I used red quinoa

Almond-Quinoa Muffins

There are certain recipes that deserve repeating. I wanted to try these Almond-Quinoa Muffins again, but this time with a few changes. They are from a great cookbook- Veganomicon- and I wanted to make them using low-fat buttermilk instead of soy milk.

I made few other small changes and the muffins turned out just as delicious as they did the first couple of times that I made them. I've mentioned before that one of the reasons that I love to make muffins is that they aren't supposed to be super sweet and they can be a really healthy snack or breakfast option.

These are a really great way to use leftover cooked quinoa. I love to use red quinoa when I make these because it makes them look interesting. The addition of cardamom in this muffin adds a really great depth to the flavor. I made a double batch and still have some in the freezer, so we can pop them in the microwave for a quick snack!

Almond-Quinoa Muffins from Veganomicon

• 1 cup vanilla soy milk (I used low-fat buttermilk)
• 1 tbsp ground flaxseeds
• 1/4 cup canola oil (I used 1 Tbls canola oil and 3 Tbls unsweetened applesauce)
  
• 1/4 cup agave nectar or pure maple syrup
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose or whole wheat pastry flour (I used white whole wheat)
  
• 1/4 cup almond meal almond flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp cardamom
• 1 1/4 cups cooked quinoa
• 1/2 cup finely chopped dried apricots or currants

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and lightly grease a non-stick 12-cup muffin tin.
In a medium size bowl, whisk together the soy milk (buttermilk) and ground flaxseed. Allow to sit for 1 minute, then whisk in oil, agave nectar and vanilla.
In a separate large bowl, sift together flour, almond meal, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and spices. Add the wet ingredients to the dry, mixing until just incorporated. Gently fold in the cooked quinoa and the apricots and mix until only the large lumps are gone.
Pour into the prepared muffin tin and bake for 20 to 22 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean.

Pumpkin Spice Granola

This recipe and variations on it, have been floating around everywhere the past couple of months. I think it originated on Baking Bites, so that is where I went to get the recipe when I wanted to make this granola.

The interesting thing about this granola is that it contains pumpkin puree and there is no oil or butter at all. The pumpkin puree is combined with applesauce, maple syrup and other things, and that is what binds it all together.

I don't keep puffed rice cereal on hand and I had seen some granola recipes that used uncooked quinoa/amaranth in granola, so I subbed some uncooked quinoa and uncooked amaranth in my granola mix. I liked the extra crunch that they added.
I threw in some roasted pepitas (pumpkin seeds) and chocolate chips as my add-ins. I don't really care for dried fruit in my granola and I knew the addition of chocolate chips would make this more appealing to my kids, who happened to love this granola.

This was really good and a fresh take on granola. We loved it.

* note-I don't eat yogurt very often, but this granola was really good with Siggi's Orange & Ginger yogurt.

Recipe for Pumpkin Spice Granola from Baking Bites
* I used 1/2 cup uncooked amaranth and 1/2 cup uncooked quinoa in place of the puffed rice cereal
* I added 1/4 cup ground flaxmeal to the dry ingredients
* I added 1/2 cup roasted pepitas to the granola after the first 30 minutes of baking
* I stirred in 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips after the granola was cool

Eggplant Parmesan

When I bought a couple of eggplants a few weeks ago, it wasn't because I had anything specific in mind that I wanted to make with them. It was because they were for a great price and I had no doubt at all that I would use them.

I was flipping through Cooking Light and saw that one of the best recipes from that particular issue was for Eggplant Parmesan. I didn't follow the recipe completely, as they had it turned into a casserole of sorts-I just used their coating and baking instructions.
I decided to top our eggplant with provolone cheese, served it over red quinoa and used some bottled marinara sauce to bring it all together.

My oldest son was a little bit wary of this dish, but I told him it would taste just like chicken. He tried it and concluded on his own that it did taste like chicken!

We really enjoyed this lightened version of a classic dish. It was good!
Recipe for Eggplant Parmesan
* I only followed the recipe for steps 1 & 2
* I added some Italian seasoning to my panko coating
* I topped each slice of eggplant parmesan with 1/2 slice of provolone cheese and then put it back in the oven until the cheese was melted

Southwest Quinoa Salad

One of my favorite bloggers recently started a new blog. I loved her old blog, Cafe Johnsonia
(which she has kindly left up so people can still use her recipes) but, I really, really love her new blog- Fresh Clean Start.

It's all about getting to a healthier place and I absolutely love every single post.
When I saw her post about this Quinoa Salad, I could not wait to put it together.

I made this salad for our 4th of July get-together and since the recipe written was enough to serve 1-2 people, I at least quadrupled the salad ingredients, so that everyone could have some and hopefully there would be some leftover for me to eat for lunch sometime during the next week.

I cooked up a bunch of quinoa (something I always do, so that there will be enough for whatever I need during the week) and started chopping my veggies.
I used fresh corn on the cob that I got from the Farmer's Market and I also used some heirloom cherry tomatoes.
I added cumin, chili powder, paprika, and lime juice- tasting it along the way- until it was just right.

I really didn't know how well it would be received at our dinner, but many people really, really liked it. This made me happy, but also limited the amount of leftovers. Luckily, there was enough leftover for lunch one day and I served it over a big pile of salad greens as Lindsey suggested.

This really is so, so good and good for you. I can't wait to make a big batch of it again.



Recipe for Southwest Quinoa Salad
* I used heirloom cherry tomatoes
* I used fresh corn on the cob
* I sprinkled sunflower seeds on top

Quinoa & Swiss Chard with Fried Egg

Going to the Farmer's Market on Saturday mornings is one of my favorite things to do in the summer. I love all the local produce. It makes me feel great when I support local growers and also makes me happy to know that the swiss chard, or whatever else I buy is grown naturally without pesticides.
I also love taking my kids with me so they can see how important it is to me to buy local whenever possible. Plus, they love having input on what we purchase.

One of my favorite things to buy is swiss chard. I just love it right now.
This is one of the ways we enjoyed it recently. I sauteed the chard like I usually do, then added some cooked quinoa that I had in the fridge. I topped it all off with a fried egg (courtesy of my neighbor across the street). Perfect dinner, in my opinion.

Buttermilk-Quinoa Cakes with Rhubarb Blackberry Compote

I checked out Deborah Madison's Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone from the library a week or so ago and was intrigued by a variation of her buttermilk pancakes that called for adding quinoa to the batter.
I had some cooked quinoa in the fridge and decided to try it out.
I also had blackberries and rhubarb, so I decided to make a tart compote to top my pancakes with. I noticed that Maria had done a rhubarb berry compote to top some pancakes recently, so I was inspired to create my own compote creation.
I added some lime juice and zest to my fruit, a little sugar and water and then thickened it at the end with a little cornstarch. It was so tasty. Nice and tart.
The pancakes were really good too. My kids ate them plain that entire day as snacks- they loved them.

I used some of the leftover compote to top my oatmeal the other day and it was delicious. Also good with almond butter on toast. Yum.

Buttermilk Quinoa Cakes adapted from Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone by Deborah Madison 10th Anniversary Edition

1 1/2 cups flour (I used white wheat)
1 1/2 to 3 Tbls sugar
salt
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsps baking powder
2 egg whites
1 egg
3 Tbls canola oil
1 1/2 cups low-fat buttermilk
1 tsp vanilla
3/4 cup cooked quinoa

Mix the dry ingredients in one bowl. Mix the egg whites, egg, oil, buttermilk and vanilla in another bowl. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and stir just to combine.
Gently fold in the cooked quinoa.

For each pancake, drop 1/4 cup batter onto a nonstick griddle or skillet over medium-high heat. Cook, without disturbing until fine bubbles appear on the surface. Flip over and cook until browned on the second side.

Serve immediately or keep warm in a low (200 degree) oven until all are finished.

Rhubarb Blackberry Compote by Mary Ann
2 cups chopped rhubarb
1 1/2 cups blackberries
zest and juice of 1 lime
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup water +2 Tbls cold water
1 Tbls cornstarch

Combine rhubarb, blackberries, lime zest and juice, sugar and 1/4 cup water in a heavy bottomed saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
Mix 2 Tbls cold water and cornstarch in a small bowl.
Add the fruit mixture and lower heat. Cook for a few minutes more, until thickened.

Vegetarian Taco Salad

The most recent issue of Eating Well had a section of great salads. I wanted to make every single one of them. So far I have made 2. The Spiced Eggplant-Lentil one that I posted a few days ago and this take on taco salad.
I liked the idea of a vegetarian taco salad and knew that if I played around with this recipe a little bit it would be a great dinner for us and no one would even notice that there wasn't any meat.

Usually when I make tacos I use lean ground turkey and reduce the amount by 1/2, adding a can or two of black, kidney or some other kind of bean to fill in for the "missing meat". Not that I miss it at all.
So, I was really happy when I saw this version which had beans, corn, whole grains and other things as the main event.

I had to make a couple of changes since my husband doesn't like tomatoes. I used red peppers instead and didn't combine all the salad ingredients. I just layered them on everyone's plates, since some of my kids don't like salsa, I just added that to my hubby's salad and mine.

I also used quinoa instead of brown rice just because I already had some that was cooked in my fridge.



Recipe for Vegetarian Taco Salad
* I used quinoa instead of brown rice
* I added cumin, subbed red bell pepper for tomatoes and mixed my salad together differently than the recipe advised.

Quinoa Cakes with Ham, Onion, and Chard

I saw this recipe in Everyday with Rachael Ray Magazine and knew I had to make it as soon as possible.
It combines two of my favorite ingredients- quinoa and swiss chard.
I didn't really follow the recipe.
The recipe wanted caramelized onions, but I don't really care for those, so I kinda just did my own thing with the swiss chard and ham.
I followed the recipe for the quinoa cakes though.

I used Ellie Krieger's technique for making the ham crispy that I first discovered when I made her Cobb Salad. Basically, you slice the ham and cook it in a hot skillet, coated with cooking spray until it gets nice and crispy- it only takes a couple of minutes.

I cooked my swiss chard like this- making sure to keep all the beautiful stems in there, since they get nice and tender and yummy.

The final outcome was a really delicious dish.
You can leave off the ham pieces and make sure you cook the quinoa in vegetable broth and it makes a really great vegetarian dish.
Either way- this was a great success.
Really pretty with the chard and really tasty too.
You can find the original recipe by following the link below
Recipe for Quinoa Cakes with Ham, Onion, and Chard

Broiled Salmon with Peppercorn Lime Rub and Quinoa Vegetable Salad

It seems like it will never stop raining around here. I am not going to complain about the weather, but somehow it really affects my mood more than I would like it too.
When I wake up to gray skies and rainfall, I want to snuggle back into my covers and stay there for the entire day. At this point in my life, staying in bed all day is not an option.

That little blurb has absolutely nothing to do with this salmon- I just had to share.

I can't remember exactly where I saw this recipe, I think it was in a Cooking Light magazine or cookbook or something. The combination of the pepper and lime sounded really good to me and I liked the fact that the side dish was a quinoa-veggie combination.
This quick rub comes together is seconds and it is a simple flavor combination. Sometimes those simple things have the best results.

I am lucky because my kids really love to eat fish. I have been trying to serve it at least twice a week and it is really helpful that I don't get any complaints when I serve fish for dinner.
This was a really great, quick dinner.
My family loves quinoa too, so there were no fights about that either.
I love having sucessful dinner experiences.



For Quinoa-Vegetable Salad- combine 1 1/4 cups chicken broth and 3/4 cup uncooked quinoa in a medium saucepan; bring mixture to a boil.
Cover and simmer 12 minutes or until liquid is almost absorbed.
Stir in 1 1/2 cups chopped zucchini and 1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper. (I also added 1 cup sliced mushrooms).
Cover and cook 5 minutes or until liquid is absorbed.
Remove from heat.
Stir in 2 Tbls chopped fresh chives, 2 tsps olive oil, 1/4 tsp each salt and pepper.

Recipe for Broiled Salmon with Peppercorn Lime Rub

Greek Quinoa Salad

Quinoa is one of my favorite foods. My family loves it too.
Have you tried it?
I buy mine in the bulk section of the local health food store. I love red quinoa too.
It is better for you than rice, bulgur, millet, pasta, etc. Any of those things. It is a complete protein and you can prepare it in no time.
Make sure that you rinse your quinoa before cooking it. I put mine in a sieve and rinse it multiple times before I cook it. This removes the acidic, bitter coating that it has on it.
I made a Greek salad with my quinoa and also served some roasted acorn squash over some of my quinoa the next day.
It is so versatile. You can eat it warm or cold. Sweet or savory. You can add it to bake goods. Basically you can do whatever you want with it.
It is a super food.
I love it.
Greek Quinoa Salad by Mary Ann
2 cups cooked quinoa
1 cup chopped bell pepper
1 cup canned garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
2 cups baby spinach
feta cheese
lemon juice
olive oil
1/2 Tbls Greek seasoning

Combine quinoa, bell pepper, garbanzo beans, and spinach in a large bowl. Squeeze the juice of 1/2 lemon over the mixture. Drizzle with olive oil. Add Greek seasoning.
Toss all ingredients and sprinkle feta cheese over top.

Pork and Squash Burritos

Happy New Year Everyone!
I hope everyone had a great 2009 and that 2010 brings more happiness and joy to your lives.
I am excited about a new year and a chance for a new start in some ways.

I have had a crazy couple of weeks and decided to take the past couple days off from updating this blog, even though I have lots of things to post about.

I made these at least a month ago, if not more because I had leftover pork and squash from this dish, (which I must ask- have you made it yet? because if you haven't, you really should, not only because it is incredibly delicious, but also because you can make THESE with the leftover pork as well)

I remember seeing a couple recipes for Pork and Squash Burritos and I knew that they would be really great with this leftover pork and squash, which was already wonderfully spiced and cooked.

I didn't follow the recipe exactly, mainly because my squash and pork were already cooked, but most of the spices are the same.
I filled my burritos with spinach and cooked quinoa.
Yummy.

If one of your goals for 2010 is trying new foods or new combinations of foods, this would be a good one to start with.

Come back tomorrow for details on how I am going to make 2010 a really healthy year!
Enjoy your first day of 2010!

Recipe for Pork and Squash Burritos

Quinoa with Summer Squash, Red Peppers, and Roasted Pepitas

So, this is it.
This is the last dish that I took pictures of before we moved across the country.
Well, maybe not really, but this is the last post that I have in my drafts from before we moved.
I chose this as a side dish the moment I got my June issue of Bon Appetit and wanted to use quinoa instead of rice.
I love pepitas (pumpkinseeds) and I roasted more than the recipe called for because I like having them as a snack.
So crunchy and delicious.
This was an okay side dish, but it was lacking in the flavor department, so I crumbled some feta on top. I still felt like it needed some extra herbs or seasonings and would definitely play around with the recipe a little bit more if I made it again.


We are supposed to close on our house today, but I haven't heard yet if it is happening for sure. If not, then it will be the first part of next week.
I am really excited to have my own kitchen again and to be able to get everything unpacked.
I don't know when we will get our computer set up (hopefully soon) and all my pictures downloaded (I must have at least 700 by now- it will take forever).

But I hope to be back with a post sometime next week, and soon after that get back into the swing of things with all the baking/cooking groups that I am a part of.
I have included a couple of links to recipes that I have made again, or recently, but things that I won't be posting about again, or in some cases, recipes I haven't taken any photos of.

Keep checking back and hopefully I will have something delicious for you soon!

Quinoa with Summer Squash, Red Peppers, and Roasted Pepitas adapted from Bon Appetit Magazine

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped (about 1 1/4 cups)
1 red bell pepper, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 medium yellow zucchini or crookneck squash, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 medium green zucchini, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 1/2 cups long-grain white rice (about 10 ounces) (I used quinoa)
3 cups low-salt chicken broth
3 tablespoons roasted salted shelled pumpkin seeds*
3 tablespoons finely chopped Italian parsley

Preparation

Heat oil in heavy large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion and cook until soft, stirring frequently, about 4 minutes.

Add bell pepper, yellow zucchini, and green zucchini; sauté until vegetables begin to soften, about 3 minutes. Add rice; sauté 1 minute, stirring constantly. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Add broth, increase heat to high, and bring to boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and cook until rice is tender, 18 to 20 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Stir in pumpkin seeds and parsley.
* Available at many supermarkets

Here are a few of the recipes I have made in the past few weeks

Better Than P.F. Changs Lettuce Wraps

Turkey or Chicken Pot Stickers and Prudys Asian Chicken Salad with Ginger-Soy Dressing

Chicken and Summer Squash Kebabs

Greek-style Tilapia

Peanut Noodles with Shredded Chicken


Coming Soon- Summer Favorites and The Cake Slice!

Almond-Quinoa Muffins and quinoa for breakfast with fruit and milk

I can't even remember when exactly I saw these muffins on Wendy's blog- Pink Stripes, but I had seen so many other tasty looking things from the cookbook- Veganomicon, that I decided to order it. (Don't tell my husband- actually it was a couple of months ago, so I guess it is okay now.)

These muffins are the first thing that I made. I already had some cooked quinoa in the fridge- a mix of red quinoa and regular, so I didn't have to cook any especially for this recipe. These muffins were good. Almonds, apricots, quinoa- what else could you want in a muffin? They were gone within a couple of hours!

I also saw another idea for eating quinoa that looked really interesting- serving it with fruit, milk, and any other toppings you want for breakfast. I added a little brown sugar too. Oh, how I love quinoa!

Almond-Quinoa Muffins

Quinoa with milk and fruit

Coming Tomorrow- Jicama and Black Bean Salad

Three-Grain Risotto with Asparagus Spears

Okay- I confess. I am obsessed with risotto. You probably already know this if you ever look at my blog. I have tried it with all types of grains, vegetables, seasonings, spices and everytime I love it.
This Cooking Light recipe uses arborio rice, quinoa, and instant barley. A nice combination of grains. I love all of those grains and I was excited to see how a combination of the three would turn out.
I also really like asparagus, as do my kids and it was perfect with this risotto.
This recipe was a little bit creamier than some of the others that I have tried-I think because of the milk and cheese that is added near the end, but the extra creaminess was very delicious.
I ordered risotto at a restaurant recently and was very disappointed by the taste. It was practically soup. Does anyone have any recommendations of a good place to order risotto? Even if you do, I will probably just keep making it at home. I tend to think you can make almost anything at home that will be just as good or better than eating out. But that is just me.

Three-Grain Risotto with Asparagus Spears from Cooking Light

1/8 teaspoon saffron threads, crushed (I omitted this)

1 (14-ounce) can fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/4 cup finely chopped shallots (about 2 medium)

1/2 cup uncooked Arborio or other short-grain rice

1/2 cup uncooked quick-cooking barley

1/4 cup uncooked quinoa

1/2 cup dry white wine ( I used chicken broth)

1 cup water

1 cup (4 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese

2/3 cup 1% low-fat milk

2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

12 asparagus spears, steamed

1 tablespoon pine nuts, toasted

Bring saffron and broth to a simmer in a small saucepan (do not boil).

Keep warm over low heat.
Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add shallots; sauté 3 minutes. Add rice, barley, and quinoa; sauté 2 minutes.

Add wine; cook 2 minutes or until liquid is nearly absorbed. Stir in 1 cup water; cook 5 minutes or until liquid is nearly absorbed, stirring constantly.

Add broth mixture, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring constantly until each portion of broth mixture is absorbed before adding the next (about 25 minutes total).
Remove from heat; stir in cheese and next 4 ingredients (cheese through pepper). Top with asparagus spears, and sprinkle with pine nuts.

Up Next- Craving Ellie- Salmon and Lentils and Barefoot Bloggers- Chinese Chicken Salad