Breakfast Quinoa

Over the last few years, I have fallen in love with quinoa. It's my go to side dish, or base for quick shrimp or ground turkey dishes. When saw a recipe for apples and cinnamon breakfast quiona I was beyond excited! I made a few tweaks to better fit my tastes and I am not even embarrassed to say that I eat this dish EVERY single work-day. Literally, every week I make a batch on Sunday and eat off it all week.

 Recipe:
1 cup dry quinoa, rinsed well
1 1/2 cups water
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon + more for sprinkling
2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/4 cup golden raisins
1/4 cup  milk, per serving

Directions:
 Combine quinoa, water, cinnamon and vanilla in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, cover, and let cook for 15 minutes until quinoa can be fluffed with a fork.
*If eating immediately, divide cooked quinoa between four bowls then stir in apple sauce, raisins, and milk.
**If saving for work, I scoop out what looks to be one fifth of the quinoa, pour in the milk and microwave for one minute. Once heated, stir in apple sauce and raisins. Top with a sprinkle of cinnamon if desired. This time around I topped with a few apple chunks, but it's equally great with just raisins and apple sauce.

The Cake Boss!

 Working at the American Cancer Society has provided me many opportunities to get involved in some great charity work through fundraisers and events. Being the foodie that I am, I jumped on the opportunity to become a committee member at the American Cancer Society's Taste of Hope tasting event. On May 2nd, 82 Mercer was packed with amazing restaurants from all over NYC and surrounding areas.

My favorite, of course, was the 100th birthday cake from Carlos Bake Shop in Hoboken, NJ.... you know THE cake boss, as in Buddy Valastro from TLC. Yes, that guy!! His team created an amazing four tier cake to commemorate the American Cancer Society's 100th birthday. It was absolutely beautiful.

Ashley and I after a successful haul into our office.

While I wasn't able to enjoy a slice, I did pick off a few pieces of the fondant confetti as my co-worker and I transported it back to our office after the event. And by transport, I mean we hauled the 75 pound cake into the back seat of someones car. I held onto that cake for dear life as we turned corners and hit every pothole NYC has to offer. I can happily say we made it safely back to the office and were able to share it with our residents at Hope Lodge. What a treat!

G-Free Chicken, Asparagus and Mushroom Risotto

Once in a while I find myself craving rice. It doesn't happen often, but when it does my go to meal is some form of risotto. Now don't get me wrong, I could devour a huge bowl of coconut white rice any day, but I haven't attempted to make that at home just yet. As it relates to risotto, there is just something about the taste of the rice cooked in wine and broth that I absolutely love.

Last night was one of those nights. I had my risotto rice on hand, some chicken in the freezer and a few veggies in the fridge - practically fate! With no real recipe in mind, I whipped up this savory dish and was satisfied in no time!

 Recipe:
1/2 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 1/2 cups gluten free chicken broth
1/2 cup dry white wine, I use sauvignon blanc
1 cup uncooked regular long grain rice 
1/2 pound asparagus, cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces 
1 1/2 cups fresh mushrooms, chopped
1/4 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning 
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese 

Directions:
1) Spray 12-inch nonstick skillet with cooking spray; heat over medium-high heat. Cook chicken in skillet 3 to 5 minutes, stirring frequently, until light brown.
2) Stir in broth and wine; heat to boiling. Stir in rice; reduce heat. Cover and simmer without stirring 10 minutes.
3) Stir in asparagus, mushrooms and Italian seasoning. Cover and simmer without stirring 8 to 10 minutes or until rice is tender and chicken is no longer pink in center; remove from heat. Stir in cheese.

Voila! A tasty meal with minimal effort. Enjoy!

What I've Been Using...

Over the last few months I've been doing my best to get comfortable with my gluten free lifestyle. It sure hasn't been easy but I've been fortunate enough to come across several gluten free products to make the transition a little less challenging.

I'll let you all in on a little secret... I haven't yet mastered the art of baking with the g-free all purpose flour. I've done some research and read that typically, a little bit of xanthan gum needs to be added to get the same consistency as regular flour. Rather than spending hours in my hot kitchen getting this science down, I stick with pre-made baked goods, like the Emmy's Lemon Ginger Macaroons below. They were so delicious!

Check out some of the goods here! And in case you're wondering, Red Bridge beer is my favorite of all of these products. ;)

Gluten Free Broccoli Parmesan Rositto

People tend to complain that risotto is so hard to make and that's it's so easy to mess up. I've never understood that. Maybe when I first made it  I had a great recipe to work off of but I've made other variations since and still haven't had any issues.

This recipe was a quickie that I tossed together for a friend earlier this week. To be honest, I was too lazy to defrost any chicken or ground turkey so it became broccoli parm risotto but the addition of meat would have been great as well. If you decide to do that, cook the meat and onions first, take them out of the pan then add them in just before adding butter below. Here is the full recipe:

Recipe:
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 onion, diced
1  1/2 cups ariboio rice
3 cups gluten free chicken broth
1/2 cup white wine
2 tbsp butter
3/4 cup Parmesan
2 cups frozen broccoli, defrosted
Directions:
1) Heat oil in a deep skillet over medium heat. Sauté onion until softened then add chicken broth. Bring broth to a boil then stir in rice. Stir continuously for the first 3 minutes. Put a lid on the pan and cook for about 15-20 minutes until broth has almost dissolved, stirring every 4-5 minutes.
2) Once broth is almost dissolved the rice will be fluffy and look a little soupy, that's ok. Add the butter, Parmesan and broccoli. Stir to combine and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Gluten Free Greek Chicken Quinoa

They say that cooking at home will help to ensure that gluten isn't in your food because you have full control over what you put in your meal. Well that doesn't help very much when your fail to read labels. Yes, people, I accidentally glutened myself. And when I started to get a headache while eating I got concerned.

I had made dinner for a few friends in honor of the Mad Men premier Sunday night. My menu was planned solely on what foods I knew were at my boyfriends apartment and what I had left in my fridge to bring over. It worked out perfectly, until of course I came home after dinner and read that WHEAT GLUTEN was an ingredient in the chicken broth. Ugh!! I was finally feeling good for the first time in months and then I poisoned myself. Luckily, it was nothing an excessive amount of water and sleep couldn't fix.

Take this as my Celiac PSA: always check labels!!

Now on to the recipe. It was realllllly good, regardless of my ridiculous error.

Recipe:
3 large chicken breasts, halved
1 1/2 uncooked quinoa
3 cups gluten free chicken stock
2 tbsp of olive oil
1/2 onion, diced
1/2 red pepper, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup olives, halved
1/2 cup feta
1 tsp Italian seasoning
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Season both sides of the chicken with salt, pepper and Italian seasoning. Place them on a rimmed cookie sheet and pop them in the oven to cook for about 25-30 minutes, flipping half way through.
2) Meanwhile, heat oil in a sauce pan over medium high heat. Sauté peppers and onion until softened, about 8 minutes. Next, add garlic and stir until fragrant, about one minute. Remove from pan and set aside.
3) In the same pan, add quinoa and chicken broth and cook over high heat until boiling then bring to a summer and until almost all water has absorbed.
4) After the chicken and quinoa have finished cooking, combine together with onions and pepper. Stir in feta, olives and salt and pepper to taste.

Kale Salad wtih Garlic and Onion Dressing

The infamous salad I talked about in my last post is one that I can't even take credit for but I'll happily make it any day! I had dinner with Hillery a few weeks ago and she whipped this bad boy up in no time.

I have to say, salad can be one of the most mundane dishes to make so if your looking to making something super delicious and quick for your next meal or party you've got to try this!

Recipe:
For the salad:
1 bunch kale, stems removed and roughly chopped or torn
1 red pepper, diced
1/2 cup grated Parmesan

For the Dressing:
4 cloves garlic, sliced thinly
1/2 onion, diced very small
1/2 cup olive oil
1/3 cup balsamic vinegar

Directions:
1) Toss the kale, parmesan and red pepper together then set aside.
2) Heat oil over medium heat then add garlic slices. Cook for about five minutes until the garlic starts to brown. Once browned, remove the garlic from the oil. Set on a paper towel to absorb oil. Next, add onion to oil and cook until softened. Finally, add balsamic to heated oil and onion. The dressing is complete
3) Crumble cooked garlic with your hands and add to the salad. This adds an amazing garlic crunch to each bite.
4) Top salad with dressing. Pour enough to just cover. Also, don't feel like you need to add all of the onion to the salad. A little goes a long way.

I am hooked on this salad and to my surprise so are my boyfriend and his friends! You know a salad is good when guys dig it too.