Quinoa Burrito Bowls

I've been trying to incorporate more meatless meals into my menu planning, and this is one of my family's favorites. It's simple and quick to prepare, so of course, I love it. And with quinoa as the base, I'm happy we're getting a complete protein even though there's no meat in the dish. Though I have been known to toss in some leftover grilled chicken or steak, just to use it up.

Here's what you need:

1 cup quinoa, rinsed
2 cups liquid (I use chicken stock and water)

For the sauce:
1/2 cup sour cream
1 TBSP milk
1-2 teas taco seasoning

For the seasoning (not the same as the taco seasoning in the sauce)
1 teas. each garlic powder, smoked paprika, curry powder, celery seed and sea salt

Toppings of your choice : chopped lettuce or cabbage, diced tomatoes, chopped avocado, black beans, corn, salsa, onions, shredded cheese, cilantro - anything you'd like on a taco or burrito

 Combine the quinoa and liquid in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer covered for 15 minutes or until the liquid is absorbed and quinoa is tender.

While the quinoa is cooking, blend the sauce ingredients. You could do this earlier in the day if you wanted to.

In a small bowl, combine the seasoning ingredients.

When the quinoa is cooked, start building your burrito bowl. I really like that every family member can customize this to his/her own tastes.

Start with the quinoa in a large bowl or on a plate. Add several dollops of the sauce. Then layer on the toppings and sprinkle about 1/2 teas of the seasoning over all.

Using a fork, mix the burrito bowl together.

How yummy does that look?

Variations :
If you don't like quinoa, brown rice is a great substitute!

For unique flavor twists, use different flavors of salsa like peach mango or green salsa.

Mrs. Dash seasonings are great to use if you don't have the ingredients for the seasoning blend.

Cheesy Broccoli Quinoa

Quinoa is quickly becoming one of my favorite ingredients to use in my cooking. It's full of protein and can be used in a variety of dishes. I've made muffins and chili with it. How is that for variety?

This recipes takes the classic cheesy broccoli rice casserole and offers the modern twist of quinoa instead of rice. I think I like it even better than rice!

Here's what you need:

1 cup quinoa, rinsed
2 cups chicken broth
1 cup chopped cooked broccoli
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided
1/2 cup milk
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/2 teas seasoning salt
1/2 teas garlic powder
1/4 cup panko bread crumbs

In a saucepan, combine the quinoa and broth. Bring to a boil, then cover and simmer for 15 minutes, until the liquid is absorbed and the quinoa is tender. Mix the cooked quinoa with the broccoli, 1 cup of cheese, milk, egg, seasoning salt and garlic powder.

Transfer to a greased 8x8 dish. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese then the panko crumbs. Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes.

Quinoa Chili

I've been trying to incorporate quinoa into our diets more since it's a great source of protein. I had some leftover quinoa from another recipe, so I decided to make some chili. The quinoa was a fantastic replacement for ground beef. It even had a similar texture.

To make this recipe completely vegetarian, sub out the beef broth for vegetable broth.

Here's what you need:

1 small onion, diced
1 zucchini, diced
1 can chili beans or kidney beans
1 cup frozen corn
1 can (15 oz) tomato sauce
2 cups beef broth
1 teas chili powder
1 teas garlic powder
1/2 teas cumin
1/2 teas sea salt
1/4 teas black pepper
2 cups cooked quinoa

In a saucepan, cook the onion and zucchini in a little olive oil until tender. Stir in the remaining ingredients except the quinoa. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and allow to simmer for 15 minutes. Stir in the quinoa and heat through. If the chili thickens too much to your liking, add a little more beef broth.

You can also play around with the spices if you like a little more heat to your chili. Sprinkle in some cayenne or a little more chili powder. Diced tomatoes with green chiles would be a great addition, too.

Pumpkin Quinoa Muffins

I've been trying out some new quinoa recipes lately. This one was sent to me by a reader, Deb from Not Inadequate. It combines my love of pumpkin with the the protein power house of quinoa. What's not to like about this recipe?

The kids really liked the muffins, but the person who liked them most was my husband. He declared that these not-too-sweet muffins were the perfect accompaniment to a hot cup of coffee. He drank several cups and ate several muffins just to prove it to me!

Here's what you need:

1 1/4 cups white wheat flour
3/4 cup light brown sugar
1 teas pumpkin pie spice
1 teas baking powder
1/2 teas baking soda
1/2 teas sea salt
3/4 cup cooked quinoa
4 TBSP butter, melted
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
3/4 cup canned pumpkin
1/2 cup milk
2 teas vanilla extract
additional brown sugar and cinnamon for the topping, if desired

In a mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, pie spice, baking powder, baking soda and sea salt. Add the cooked quinoa, mixing with a fork to separate the grains.

In another bowl, whisk together the butter, eggs, pumpkin, milk and vanilla until smooth.

Gradually stir the pumpkin mixture into the dry ingredients just until combined. Don't overmix.

Fill greased or paper-lined muffin cups with batter. If desired, sprinkle the batter with a mixture of brown sugar and cinnamon. I keep a spice jar with the cinnamon sugar mixture on hand. This will give it a nice, sweet crunch on top.

Bake at 375 degrees for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in a muffin comes out clean. Remove from the muffin pan and cool on a wire rack.

I really love that these muffins are healthy. There's not too much sugar and they're full of protein. It's a perfect way to start the day!

See the little light-colored "dots" in the muffin? That's the quinoa!

Deb, thanks so much for sharing your recipe with me! It's already a family favorite!

Quinoa with Veggies

Since I joined Pinterest, I've seen quinoa (pronounced keen-wa) recipes popping up everywhere. I decided to investigate this grain a little further and found out it's really not a grain, but a seed related to the spinach family. It's very popular with vegetarians because it's considered a complete protein. It's also gluten-free, making it ideal for people with celiac disease. Here's a great article about the health benefits of quinoa if you want to find out more.

My first attempt at making a quinoa dish was a huge hit with the family. I mixed the cooked quinoa with sauteed veggies and spices. So easy!

Here's what you need:

1 cup quinoa, rinsed
2 cups water or chicken broth
1/2 TBSP garlic powder
1/2 TBSP onion powder
3 cups diced veggies (I used zucchini, mushrooms and carrots)
1 teas sea salt (or to taste)

In a saucepan, combine the quinoa and water or broth. Bring to a boil. Stir in half the garlic powder (this will be 3/4 teas) and half the onion powder (3/4 teas). Reduce heat to a low and allow to simmer for about 15 minutes. Fluff with a fork.

While the quinoa is cooking, saute the veggies in a little olive oil until soft. Combine the quinoa and veggies, then stir in the remaining garlic powder, onion powder and sea salt.

The quinoa had a slightly nutty flavor. As it cooks, the outer shell slips off, adding a little texture. You can see the tiny little shells in the picture.

I'm looking forward to experimenting with other quinoa recipes, including some breakfast ones. I'll share them when I do.

For more yummy recipes shared by cooks from all over, visit Full Plate Thursday hosted by Miz Helen's Country Cottage.