Keen What?

Have you heard of quinoa? I was originally introduced to it by my sister-in-law, Shelley, years ago..however as of recently it has really gotten popular. Quinoa (pronounced Keen-wah) is a grain that comes from South America. The great thing about it is that it contains more protein than any other grain.

Quinoa contains an average of 16.2% protein, compared with 7.5 for rice, 9.9 percent for millet and 14% for wheat. Some varieties of quinoa are even more than 20% protein. But what makes quinoa’s protein special is the unusual high quality of it. It is a complete protein, with an essential amino acid balance very close to the ideal.

It is super easy to cook, similar to rice. If you haven't tried it, I encourage you to; especially if you are trying to reduce your carbs and eat more whole grains. You can find it in the rice section of the store or the health food section. It is very versatile. You can eat it like oatmeal, cold in salads (similar to cous cous), or warm like rice. It is a little crunchy and the texture is unique but I really like it.

Last night I made salsa pork chops and served it with quinoa instead of rice. It was delicious!

Greek Chicken & Quinoa Salad

Greek Chicken

Chicken thighs or breasts

1 C plain greek yogurt

2 TBSP olive oil

4 cloves garlic

1/2 tsp oregano

1/2 lemon (zested and juiced)

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp fresh cracked pepper

1/4 C fresh parsley chopped fine

Put all ingredients in a plastic bag and marinate for at least an hour.  You can grill the chicken or bake it in the oven at 350.  You may eat it separately or I like to chop it up and serve it on top of my quinoa salad with tzatziki sauce.  I also like to add it to a pita pocket with more greek veggies and tzatziki sauce. (from recipefavorite.com)

Quinoa Salad

Prepare your quinoa (1 C quinoa, 2 C water or broth)

+ greek vegetables

• artichoke hearts
• olives
• tomato
• purple onion
• cucumber
• feta cheese

Pour some balsamic vinaigrette over the top.  I like to put about 1/2 C on the whole salad and then stir well.  The quinoa and veggies will saturate it up.  Chill for at least one hour.  If you need to add more dressing, you can when you serve it.  This salad is super yummy and fresh tasting! (by Cheryl)

Tzatziki Sauce

• 1 C Plain Greek yogurt
• 1 TBSP Lemon zest and juice (you could also use white vinegar)
• 1 Cucumber peeled/seeded and chopped fine
• 2-4 tsp garlic
• 2 tsp olive oil
• to taste-salt & pepper
• 1/2 TBSP dill (fresh is best)

These are estimates.  I taste as I go, some people like more/less vinegar or lemon.

Preparation: The Key to Success

I believe that preparation is success!  I think this is especially true when it comes to what you eat.  I make a pretty conscious effort to plan our meals.  This decreases trips to the grocery store, time spent figuring it out, etc.  Every week I figure out what we are going to have for dinner and make a grocery list of any ingredients that I need to buy.  I also try to have 1 or 2 days that I spend a little more time prepping the food.  For example, I might chop lots of vegetables or cook a large thing of chicken that will be made for several meals, etc.  Here is my menu plan for this week.  I will try to post the recipes in my daily posts but didn't want to overwhelm you.  Blogging everyday in itself can be overwhelming.

Sunday: Catalina Taco Salad
Monday: Cranberry Pork Loin w/ green salad
Tuesday: Salmon w/ rice & broccoli salad
Wednesday: Sirloin steaks w/sweet potato & left over broccoli salad
Thursday: Greek chicken w/Quinoa salad (never heard of quinoa??)
Friday: Balsamic glazed Pork Loin w/asparagus
Saturday: Vegetable stir fry

Lunches: Tuna salad, chicken salad w/grapes & left overs

Day 10 & 11

To be honest, I can't remember a whole lot about these days except that I survived them. Just seems like I have been super busy lately.  Definitely doing lots of taxi trips with the kids, etc.  Thursday I ate really clean and had a good Zumba class.  It was throwback Thursday so we did some old songs that we hadn't done in a long long time.  It was fun.  One benefit to teaching Zumba is drinking lots of water; in a single class I can easily consume 30oz.  Thursday night I made this awesome Balsamic Pork Roast and some broccoli/cauliflower salad.  Recipes below.

Balsamic Glazed Pork Roast

Ingredients:

1 (2 pound) boneless pork tenderloin (or regular pork loin)

1 teaspoon ground sage

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1 clove garlic, crushed

1/2 cup water

Glaze

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 tablespoon cornstarch

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

1/2 cup water

2 tablespoons soy sauce

Directions:

Combine sage, salt, pepper and garlic. Rub over roast. Place in slow cooker with 1/2 cup water. Cook on low for 6-8 hours. About 1 hour before roast is done, combine ingredients for glaze in small sauce pan. Heat and stir until mixture thickens. Brush roast with glaze 2 or 3 times during the last hour of cooking. Serve with remaining glaze on the side.

 (original recipe: http://www.candcmarriagefactory.com/2011/01/brown-sugar-and-balsamic-glazed-pork.html)

Broccoli/Cauliflower Salad
1 small head of broccoli and cauliflower chopped
1/2 purple onion
6 slices of bacon
1/2 C slivered almonds
1/2 C sunflower seeds
1 C raisins and/or craisins
Dressing: 3/4 C light olive oil mayo, 2 TBSP rice vinegar, 2.5 TBSP sugar or splenda
(This makes a very large salad, so you may want to make it smaller)

Yesterday was day 11.  I had promised Reese that I would take her to a special lunch at Chic-fil-a and she could play at the playground.  I had 8 grilled chicken nuggets and also against my better judgement I had some french fries (I figured I deserved a treat and they were gluten free, right?).  This really wouldn't have been so bad except that I had 3 very (almost too) ripe bananas on the counter.  I hate to see them go to waste so I quickly made two loaves of banana bread.  My intention was to give one loaf to a friend and one loaf to a neighbor.  I didn't use oil, I subbed out for applesauce and I was out of nuts so I saved some calories by omitting them.  I gave one loaf away but when I asked my neighbor if she wanted a loaf, she said no thank you.  Long story, short...I ended up eating two slices.  

I made a greek dinner.  It was super yummy.  I made greek chicken, quinoa salad and tzatziki sauce.  It is very tasty, healthy and fresh.  I will post the recipes a little later.