What's Cookin Wednesday - Garden Enchilada Bake

This recipe is mainly from Peas and Thank you (seems that the web-site is not working today), with some changes by me...mostly I like dairy! :-)

1c quinoa, rinsed & drained
1 1/2 c vegetable broth (I had none, so used water)
1 15oz can organic tomato sauce, divided
2 1/2 t chili powder, divided
1/2 t oregano
1 zucchini, shredded and squeezed to release all excess moisture
1/3 cup non-dairy (Tofutti) or regular cream cheese
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 t cumin
salt & pepper to taste
1 c non-dairy (Daiya) mozzarella chesse, shredded
1 3oz can sliced olives, drained skipped because I don't like olives!
1 avocado, sliced
cilantro for garnish skipped because the Mister doesn't like cilantro

Preheat oven to 375.

In a medium stockpot, combine quinoa, broth, 1/2 cup of tomato sauce, 2 t chili powder and oregano. Bring to a boil over medium high heat. Reduce heat, stir and cover, simmering for 15-20 minutes. Remove lid and cook for an additional minute or two or until all of the liquid has been absorbed and quinoa is fully cooked.

Add shredded zucchini, remaining tomato sauce, remaining chili powder, cream cheese, garlic and cumin. Heat until fully incorporated. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Transfer mixture to a large casserole dish (2qt or larger) that has been lightly spritzed with olive oil or cooking spray.

Top casserole with grated cheese and sliced olives. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until cheese is bubbly.

To brown the top of the casserole, you can switch the oven over to the broil setting for the last several minutes. Mine was actually brown after 25 minutes - so I didn't do this.

Garnish with avocado slices and fresh cilantro, if desired.

While this was cooking I thought it smelled like pizza and the Mister thought it smelled like lasagna. This was a hit with both of us. Next time I'll add more veggies (mushroom, peppers, more zucchini)

Serves 6

Comments

Labor of Love (Part 1 of 3)

I love lace. I love the delicacy with which it presents itself to the world. That being said, I dont really use it very much. I do have some family doilies, and my wedding dress has some lace, but I dont go too crazy. I like to be able to clean things, and not have dust mites clinging to every available piece of cloth (they cling to everything else anyway.) So, I decided to try a painting technique. Why not paint the lace on the object? Easy to clean, lovely design, what could be better? We got this child's vanity in an old attic pick. Yes, we went into someone's hot and muggy attic for several hours. Yes, they let us jsut dig through things (can you believe it?!?!) unsupervised. Yes, we had to take our own flashlights. And yes, there was mouse droppings and dead birds up there. It was gross, but worth it. My boy LOVED it! American Pickers is his favorite tv show. So this school bus yellow vanity sat there looking at us. Begging for new life! I knew if we left ...

What's Cookin Wednesday - Sweet Potato & pinto bean tacos

SWEET POTATO AND PINTO BEAN TACOS adapted from thugkitchen.com ....but there is offensive language on the site (and in the recipes) - so you've been warned! 3 cups of cooked pinto beans (about 2-15 ounce cans) 1 teaspoons of coconut or olive oil (Olive oil is what I had) ½ cup veggie broth or water (water....) 2 teaspoons smoked paprika or chili powder (I went chili powder) 2 teaspoons blackstrap molasses (I used what I had in the cabinet) 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar or lemon juice (I have both of these at home usually, went with lemon juice this time around) 2-3 garlic cloves 1 pound of sweet potatoes (this should be about 2 cups when you chop it all up) ½ of a yellow onion 1 teaspoon coconut or olive oil salt to taste soft corn tortillas standard taco toppings that you like to add. Warm the first teaspoon of oil in a medium pot. Add the beans, water, chili powder, molasses, vinegar, and garlic. Get it to start bubbling slowly for about 5 m...

Red Door is a perfume...what is Blue Door?

My house is one of many on the block. Built in the 50s, its a cookie cutter, built for the new families that needed homes after the WWII. There is not much to make it stand out. Honestly, that is OK. I do not want it to stand out TOO much. But, a little zest is always good, right? I wanted to come home to something special. Something different from what everyone else is coming home to. So I opted to paint my door. The color was the difficulty. There are so many good ones! I went for blue. And no, its not just a college basketball statement. I love blue! And my husband happens to like it to. When you agree, you just have to go with it! We took the door down, washed it and let it dry. Make sure you pick a time when you are going to be home for a solid 6-8 hrs. :-) Then, I sanded it to get the rough spots out. After that came the painting. I tried it first with a brush. I knew it would take several coats if I went that route. So, I switched to a roller for the flat parts, brush for the gr...

Strikes my fancy

Search This Blog