QUICKIE RECIPE: Stir-Fried Quinoa with Scrambled Eggs

Even with the best planning, we all have days where we need to produce a meal in next to no time. Fortunately, it IS possible to make a decent meal very quickly, even from scratch!

This little number makes a frequent appearance at my house when I want something hot for lunch and there are no leftovers to be had (and that's most of the time, with two teenage boys in residence!)

If you have some cooked quinoa in the fridge, you can be eating this in 10 minutes. It's a surprisingly filling meal, and would work equally well for a quick weeknight dinner. (By the way, if you *don't* have some cooked quinoa in the fridge, it's a great staple to have on hand as this is just one of many things you can whip up with it in just a few minutes! You can always freeze it if you haven't used it all up after a few days).

Here's what you've gotta do:

• Heat about a tablespoon of your favourite cooking oil/fat in a nonstick pan (I love my cast iron!) 

• Toss in half a chopped onion and half a medium grated carrot and saute for a minute or two until they soften. Throw in about 1/4 cup of frozen peas and 3/4 cup cooked quinoa; cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until the peas are heated through.

• Season with salt and pepper to taste (add about 2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley if you have it on hand).

• Turn this mixture out onto your serving plate, getting the pan as clean as you can. 

• Put the pan back on the heat and add a small chunk of butter. Beat one or two eggs with a splash of milk; once the butter is melted and pan is hot, add eggs to pan and scramble to desired doneness. Place on top of quinoa mixture. 

• Top with a spoonful of sour cream and a couple of sliced green onions.

You're done!

How easy was that?!?

This makes one generous portion, and can easily be doubled/tripled/quadrupled to feed your desired amount of people (just adjust your pan size accordingly so you don't overfill the pan).

What's your favourite super-quick meal?

For more simple, tasty and family-friendly recipes like this one, check out my book: Cheap Appétit: The Complete Guide to Feeding Your Family for Less Than $400 a Month (While Eating Better Than You Ever Thought Possible) 

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RECIPE: Impress-the-Guests Pavlova

If you're looking for a showstopping dessert that is both easy and inexpensive to prepare, look no further! Pavlova has become our traditional Easter dessert, and for good reason. The different components can be prepared a day or two in advance, with the final assembly taking just a couple of minutes. I haven't yet served it to anyone who hasn't loved it, and it's a light and refreshing dessert after a heavy meal like Easter dinner.

The recipe can look a bit intimidating as there are several different layers, but each step is quite easy, so don't let that scare you off. You can easily make the meringue shell one day and the pudding the next, and whip the cream and slice the fruit the day of the meal.

Ingredients:

Meringue shell:
1 cup sugar
1 tbsp cornstarch
3 egg whites at room temperature (save yolks for the pudding)
1/8 tsp salt
1 tsp vinegar
1/2 tsp vanilla

Lemon Pudding:

¾ cup sugar

¼ cup cornstarch

2 cups milk

½ cup light cream

3 egg yolks (reserved from making the meringue)

juice and finely grated zest of 2 lemons

2 tbsp butter

3-4 cups sliced berries (strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, or a combination)

1 cup whipping cream, whipped

Instructions:

Make the meringue shell:  

·      Trace an 8” circle onto parchment paper (use an 8” round cake pan as a guide). Flip the paper over (so trace marks are on underside) and place on a baking sheet.

 

·      In a small bowl, combine sugar and cornstarch.

·      In a large bowl, combine egg whites and salt. Beat with electric mixer until they hold soft peaks. Beat in sugar mixture, 1 tablespoon at a time.

·      Add vinegar and vanilla and beat until meringue is glossy and holds stiff peaks, about 5 minutes.

·      Spread meringue in a circle on the parchment, using tracing as a guide. Mound the edges to make them higher, making the meringue “nest” like (the indentation in the middle will hold the filling)..

·      Bake meringue at 300°F for about 45 minutes or until slightly golden with a firm crust on the outside (the inside will still be softer and marshmallow-like).

·      Turn off oven and leave meringue in oven one hour longer to cool. Remove from oven and cool to room temperature. (The meringue shell can be made 2-3 days in advance; store in a cool, dry place in an airtight container until ready to serve).

Make the pudding:

·      In a medium saucepan, combine the sugar and cornstarch. Whisk in the milk and cream.

·      Cook over medium-low heat, whisking constantly, until mixture begins to thicken.

·      In a small bowl, beat egg yolks. Add about ½ cup of hot milk mixture to egg yolks and stir until combined.

·      Add egg mixture to saucepan and continue to whisk until mixture thickens completely.

·      Remove from heat and stir in lemon juice, zest and butter. Pour into a medium bowl and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled (at least 2 hours or up to 2 days in advance of serving). 

Assemble the Pavlova:

Place meringue on serving dish. Spoon pudding into centre of meringue, then top with berries. Spoon cream over top.

Serves 6-8.

I shared this recipe at Tasty Tuesday, What's On the Menu Wednesday, Frugal Food Thursday, Full Plate Thursday, the GCC Recipe Swap, Fat Camp Friday, Friday Favorites and Sweets for a Saturday.

RECIPE: Quick Crustless Quiche

A glance in our CSA share bin this week, and you know we are heading for midsummer. The bounty included kale, lettuce, salad mix, green onions, Swiss chard, cabbage, zucchini, mushrooms and potatoes.

I admit it is still sometimes a challenge to use up all my greens even after all these years as a CSA shareholder!

One of my favourite ways to use up a whole bunch of chard or spinach is to toss them into a quiche. To keep things super simple, I often make a crustless quiche (no fiddling around with a pastry crust!)

Quick Crustless Quiche
This is a truly crustless quiche - not like the other "crustless" variety that forms a crust while it bakes. Serve this with a tossed salad and you will use up lots of salad greens too.

Time: 60 minutes
Serves: 4-6

1 tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 bunch of spinach or chard, chopped
3 eggs
3/4 cup milk
4 slices regular or turkey bacon, cooked until crisp and crumbled
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
1/4 tsp each salt and pepper

Preparation:

1. In a large frying pan, saute the onion and garlic in olive oil until tender. Add spinach or chard and cook for 2-3 minutes, or until greens are wilted.

2. In a medium bowl, beat eggs and milk together. Add bacon, cheese, parsley, salt, pepper, and spinach mixture, stirring gently until well combined.

3. Pour into a greased 9" pie plate and bake at 375° F for 30-45 minutes or until golden brown on top and knife inserted in centre comes out clean.

P.S. My new camera arrived today, so photos shall return to the blog next week!

Emergency Meals

Emergency meals are for those nights when you are just plain exhausted, overwhelmed, sick, or super-short on time. Every cook should have a few emergency meals in their repertoire for nights when the going gets rough. It's been a week like that around here. I was in bed with a virus for a few days, and when I finally started to feel better I had a lot to catch up on around the house, plus a couple of days with a fairly hectic family schedule. Emergency Meals to the rescue!

Here is one of our family's favourites:

Western Omelette Wraps

Time: less than 15 minutes
Serves: flexible

You can get these done in under 15 minutes if you're not feeding more than 4 people (it'll take a little longer if you need to make more than 4 omelettes).

INGREDIENTS (to make 4 wraps):
4 large flour tortillas (we like whole wheat ones)
4 slices bacon
1-2 tbsp canola oil
8 eggs
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup each chopped onion and red pepper
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
salt and pepper
mayonnaise, mustard, guacamole, or ranch salad dressing, as desired

PREPARATION:
Cook bacon until crisp, crumble and set aside.

In a small bowl, beat 2 eggs, 1 tbsp milk, 1 tbsp each onion and red pepper, 1/4 of the crumbled bacon, and a pinch of salt and pepper.

Heat 1-2 tsp of oil in a small frying pan or omelette pan. Add egg mixture to pan, making sure mixture evenly coats bottom of pan. Cover and cook over medium heat until eggs are set.

While omelette is cooking, heat flour tortilla in microwave or on "warm" setting of oven.

Spread warm flour tortilla with mayonnaise or desired spread. Carefully slide finished omelette out of pan and onto flour tortilla. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup cheese. Roll up tightly,tucking in ends, then slice in half. Repeat process 3 more times to make 4 wraps.