New kitchen methods fascinate me.
The stranger the learning, the better!
This week’s ingredients aren’t necessarily strange, but the way I cooked it was strange to me. It’s a quinoa casserole… but you don’t have to cook the quinoa first! Perfect for the lazy chef. Like me.
For some reason I have a mental block about cooking grains. It seems like SO much effort. I know this is totally irrational, and I make other things that take much longer. It is what it is. When I saw this recipe from Lee where she simply baked the quinoa uncooked, I knew I had to try it.
I used Mexican flavors here, but I’m excited to try the method with other flavor profiles (French is next on the list!). It’s one of those magical recipes that seems like it took a ton of effort, but is incredibly easy. It’s a one dish meal – I just tossed everything in a bowl to mix and transferred it to the dish.
Random story about my dish – it was just returned to me by a friend. She’d had it for 2 years from when I brought over these Mexican Black Bean Brownies to an Oscar party. LOL!
If you like heat, you’ll love this. If you don’t, I’d keep the paprika but leave out the cayenne. The smoked paprika is a must for me. I love that smokiness with the Mexican spices and the slight sweetness from the sweet potato.
Between the bean and the quinoa, this makes for a fantastic protein-rich vegan dish!
Mexican Quinoa and Sweet Potato Casserole
- 1/2 C quinoa, uncooked and rinsed
- 1/2 C vegetable broth
- 1/2 can (8 oz) salt-free black beans, rinsed
- 1 can (15 oz) diced tomatoes
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1/2 tsp cayenne
- 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp turmeric
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon
- 1 small white (or orange) sweet potato (~275g), diced
Preheat oven to 350F. Prepare a baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.
Place all ingredients into a large bowl and miix until everything is evenly combined. Pour into baking dish, spreading evenly to combine.
Cover with foil and bake for 75 mins, or until sweet potatoes are tender and quinoa is cooked.
Makes 9 servings.
How have you enjoyed making co-workers, friends, or family stare with strange but good creations this week? The link up rules can be found here or by clicking on “Strange But Good” in the menu bar above. In short, I want to see what concoctions have earned you weird looks from co-workers, family and friends! Post your Strange But Good creations, grab the logo below for your blog, and link up here.
Remember to use #strangebutgood in any Tweets and Instagrams of your creations. 🙂
***
I’m so excited for this weekend – I’m going to see some of my old teammates at the Atlanta Rollergirls‘ Bout!
Do you have certain foods that seem like a lot of effort to cook?
What is your favorite quinoa dish?
… 
