Monday, June 11, 2012

Pineapple Quinoa

I get quite a few email comments about the diet of my protagonist, Sophie Winston. Granted, she does entertain a lot, and we tend to bring out the best when we're cooking for company. And it's no secret that Sophie has trouble zipping her jeans.

As I was writing recently, Sophie made lunch just for her elderly next door neighbor, Francie, and herself. I based it loosely on the kind of lunch I often make and share with my mom. We've eaten variations on this a couple of times in the past week. It's quick, it's easy, and it's healthy.

The core of the dish is quinoa. The last time I blogged about quinoa, one of my friends told me it looked like bugs and to please never cook it for her. Yet, here I am blogging about it again.

I've tried cooking it different ways. Interestingly, the instructions for cooking quinoa vary widely. The most surprising thing to me about quinoa recipes is that they generally call for cooking quinoa in water and then dressing it with some sort of salad dressing.

So I had to experiment. One of our favorites is pineapple quinoa. It couldn't be easier to cook. Simmering it intensifies the pineapple flavor. It's sweet and fruity and simply delicious. Top that with some leftovers -- steak, turkey slices (like I added in the picture), baked cod, shrimp, whatever you feel like. I've included mango, but strawberries are in season and they would be fabulous, too.

The pineapple quinoa is moist so we don't usually add more dressing. But if you want to drizzle your favorite on top, go right ahead. Lots of flavor, and healthy, too. You can't beat that. Maybe someday Sophie will be able to zip those jeans.


Pineapple Quinoa

1 2/3 cups pineapple juice
1 cup red quinoa

Pour quinoa and pineapple juice into a pot. Stir and bring to a boil. Cover and reduce to a simmer. Simmer for 20 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand for 5-10 minutes.

Serve as a side dish or mound on a plate and add fruits, vegetables, and meat or fish as a salad. Add dressing if desired.





7 comments:

  1. I've heard a lot about quinoa, but I still haven't tried it. This recipe is so easy-I must make a note to pick some up at the grocery store. I just you wouldn't have mentioned it looking like bugs!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. LOL, Katreader! It doesn't look like bugs. But it does get cute little curlicues when it cooks. It's so healthy and good for us. If you love pineapple, you'll like this. And it's soooo easy to fix!

      ~ Krista

      Delete
  2. Wonderful post, Krista. I can second your endorsement of quinoa; it's a great health food and works well as a substitute for rice. I like your idea of cooking it in pineapple juice, especially for the summer. Another great recipe idea that Marc and I will be trying soon. Thanks and kudos on the continued success of THE DIVA DIGS UP THE DIRT! ~ Cleo

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's supposed to be a complete protein, so I suspect it's wonderful for vegetarian dishes. I was having problems cooking it because there were so many variations on how long it should cook. 20 minutes turned out to work best.

      Thanks for your kind words about The Diva Digs up the Dirt!

      ~ Krista

      Delete
  3. Krista, what an interesting and great side dish quinoa is. [I still have a tendency to call it kwin-oh-ah instead of keen-wah...whatever, right?) But it's great for gluten-free people and nutty and adds good texture. With pineapple, I'll bet it's great! Super idea.

    ~Avery aka Daryl

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Avery, I think the pineapple will make it appeal to kids, too. It's so nice and sweet!

      ~ Krista

      Delete
  4. Let's face it, what grain doesn't look like some bug. Fresh made cranberry sauce look like a pile of beetles. This recipe sounds pretty good.
    Patg

    ReplyDelete