Quinoawesome

What the heck is quinoawesome and how do you say it? Quinoawesome is a dish that my daughter and I invented a few years ago and it's been a staple since. You say key-noah-awesome.  I served it with delicata squash rings (not pictured now, since I replaced the terrible picture that was here before). I love delicata because it's easy to work with, easy to cook, and wholly edible; you can eat the skin once cooked!

Quinoawesome Recipe:

2 tsp olive oil
1 small onion, minced
6 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup quinoa
1/4 cup white rice (uncooked)
2 cups water
1 large faux chicken bouillon cube
2 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp cayenne
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp oregano, crushed in your fingers
1 cup corn
2 cans black beans, drained and rinsed (red beans, kidney beans, and northern beans all work here, too)

Warm up the olive oil in a large pan, then add the onion and cook over medium heat until lightly browned. Add the garlic and cook for about 1 minute. Add everything else except the beans and corn and cook about 20 minutes, stirring frequently, until liquid is absorbed and grains are soft. I usually add up to another cup of water to get the grains softened nicely. Add beans and corn, cook for 5 minutes to let the flavors mix. Serve with a dollop of Tofutti sour cream and a squirt of Sriracha.

Overall, we rate it about a 4.

Delicata Recipe:

3 delicata squashes
1 TBS olive oil
Cinnamon & sugar to taste

Heat oven to 450. Wash squash, then cut each into rings, pushing out the seeds from the middle. Place the rings on a baking sheet and put the oil on the sheet, rubbing it around to cover each piece. Cook for about 30 minutes, flipping every 10. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar OR brown sugar (or both!)

Nutrition for 1/6 of the quinoawesome:

250 calories
4 g fat
12 g protein
43.8 g carbohydrates
8.5 g fiber
2 g sugars
337 mg sodium
2% Vitamin A
6% Vitamin C
8% Calcium
21% Iron

1 whole delicata + 1/3 TBS olive oil:

100 calories
4.6 g fat
2 g protein

7 g carbohydrates

2 g fiber
6 g sugar
0 mg sodium
140% Vitamin A
30% Vitamin C
4% Calcium
4% Iron