The Loaded Bowl

It's tomato season! Unfortunately if you have a garden in Arizona your tomato plants have nearly been turned into fried tomatoes. Head to the farmer's market (Gilbert has a great one on Saturdays from 7am to 11am under the water tower) and pick up a big handful of heirloom cherry tomatoes and cilantro. Get out the quinoa that is hiding in your pantry that you have been wondering what to do with. If you have not yet invested in quinoa, it's time. It is a protein rich, gluten-free grain that once cooked turns into the most lovely fluffy, nutty particle of goodness. Quinoa is a complete protein. It contains the nine essential amino acids, including a hefty dose of lysine, that the body requires for tissue growth and repair. It comes in red or white varieties and both are equally great! Anyways... here is a recipe that is packed with protein without meat. 

The Loaded Bowl

Combine:

3 cups of cooked quinoa**, cooled and fluffed

1 15 oz can of black beans (or 1 1/2 cups if you cook your own beans)

1 cup of loosely packed chopped cilantro

2 cups of halved cherry tomatoes

1 cup corn (frozen or fresh)

1 cup edamame 

Cucumber (this is optional so do however much you'd like, but we love the crisp this adds to the dish)

Salt & Pepper to taste

Add:

Zest of one lime

Juice of 3 or 4 limes (depending on your love for lime & the juiciness of the ones your using)

Toss.

If you have a big enough group that will eat this all at one meal, then go ahead and add:

2 Avocados, diced in big chunks.

If your making this for a small group and plan to have leftovers, just put avocado on each individual serving so the leftovers stay fresh for another meal. 

Dressing:

1/4 c. olive oil

1/4 c. white vinegar

2-3 cloves garlic minced

Salt & Pepper

Blend the dressing ingredients together. 

DO NOT pour the dressing all over the entire quinoa dish, it will hide the lime that you worked so hard to put in because the quinoa will just soak up the dressing as it did the lime. Instead, allow each individual to dress their own serving. 

How to serve: It's great stuffed in a pita or if your looking to cut the calories a little bit then ditch the pita and pile it on a thick bed of spinach. The tenderness of the spinach compliments everything very well. 

I love this dish! It is very refreshing and perfect for the summer time when you don't want to feel like there is a brick sitting in your stomach.

**How to cook quinoa:

1 cup of dry quinoa yields almost 4 cups cooked. I always like to cook a little extra to have in the fridge for the week to add a nutritional punch to other things. 

1 cup quinoa = 1 3/4 cup water. (Most recipes say to use double the amount of water for however much quinoa used, but I like to do less water than that to prevent the quinoa from becoming soggy. 

Place 1 cup of dry quinoa in a very fine mesh strainer. Rinse thoroughly under cold water to remove the bitter coat that can sometimes cover it. Transfer it to a medium saucepan (remember, it's going to nearly quadruple in size) and pour 1 3/4 cups of water over it. Add 1 tsp of olive oil on top. Bring to a boil then immediately cover it and bring to a simmer for 15 minutes to absorb the water. Fluff with a fork when finished, toss with a little salt & pepper and enjoy! 

Recipe adapted from Clean Eating Magazine, "The Loaded Bowl."