Vegan Week: Creamy Chipotle Orzo Casserole

This recipe is U-G-L-Y. It's the epitome as to why casserole is a dirty, 4-letter word. You know those recipes (and they are usually comfort foods) that look gawd-awwwful but taste delicious? This is one of them. I made this Wednesday, but I have to report on Tuesday, first.

                                                    Yup, it's ugly, but it tastes great.

Vegan week is posing a challenge regarding work. My office was considerate enough to accommodate veggie options for me, but 

Tuesday I ate:

• English muffin with spinach-artichoke dip*
• baby carrots. Lots of baby carrots
• Green salad
• macaroni & cheese**
• mashed potatoes**
• candied nuts**
• veggie burrito
• winter minestrone
• To drink: water, seltzer, coffee, coke, Shiner Bock 

*Recipe to be posted
**Exempt item

So this recipe is simply inspired by the contents in my fridge, primarily things that need to be used up, primarily 2 pitiful peppers, some silken tofu, french-fried onions, and some cooked orzo. As a result, measurements are very imprecise, I had to guesstimate a lot.

Creamy Chipotle Orzo Casserole (serves 4-6)

• 2 1/2 C orzo, cooked
• 2 bell peppers, different colors, cut into thin strips
• 2 green onions, sliced thin
• 1/2 C french-fried onions
• 12 oz soy sour cream
• 2/3 C silken tofu
• 3 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
• juice of 1 lime
• 1 clove garlic
• salt & pepper to taste 
• 1/3 C french-fried onions 

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium casserole dish, combine the orzo, bell peppers, green onions, and french-fried onions and mix well. 
2. In a food processor, combine the soy sour cream, tofu, chipotles, lime juice, and salt and pepper until smooth. Taste, and adjust seasonings if needed. 
3. Pour the sour cream mixture over the orzo and combine. Pop in the oven, covered, and bake for 30 mins. Uncover, and the additional onions, and bake 5 more minutes. Serve immediately. 

                                                                Taste is blind?

Kitchen Notes: This tastes like it actually has dairy in it--it's that creamy. Some of this is due to the fact that orzo has a fairly creamy texture. I would not substitute the orzo with an alternative pasta shape.

Verdict? For something that originated solely out of the contents of my fridge, I was super happy with the outcome. It has a genuinely creamy flavor, without the aftertaste often associated with soy. I enjoy it as an alternative to Spanish rice. Next time, I'll add a bit of cumin to the dish.

Southwestern Quinoa Salad

Happy World Vegetarian Day all! I'm behind again,  reporting on World Vegetarian Day. Awfully convenient, but entirely coincidental, that my own personal vegan week happened during this time.

Wednesday's menu was as follows:

• shredded wheat with soy milk
• barbecued tofu
• veggie sandwich with potato chips
• garlic broccoli campanelle** with cherry tomatoes
• candy corn
• caraway Finn Crisp
• To drink: coffee, water, cherry pepsi, coke, violet soda, & tea

**recipe upcoming in future blog entry

I was inspired to make quinoa salads from the blog Closet Cooking a long time ago. My previously posted quinoa salads can be found here and here. The inspiration for this version of quinoa salad, came from a lonely ear of corn in my fridge, as well as a half of avocado that I didn't want to go bad. Unfortunately, I forgot to take a picture of it until I was eating the last of the leftovers at work. Oops!

                                                  Very classy with the plastic utensils, no?

Southwestern Quinoa Salad (serves 4-6)

• 1/2 C quinoa, uncooked
• 10 cherry tomatoes, quartered
• 1/2 medium zucchini, diced 
• 1/2 C canned black beans, drained
• 1 ear cooked corn, kernels removed (about 1/2 C)
• 1 green onion, sliced
• 3 Tbsp vegetable oil
• 1/4 C (or more) cilantro, chopped
• juice & zest of 1-2 limes
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp oregano
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
• salt & pepper to taste
• 1/2 avocado (or more) 

1. Cook the quinoa as outlined in Quinoa Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette. Allow to cool.
2. Place the cooked quinoa in a large bowl. Mix in the cherry tomatoes, zucchini, black beans, corn, and green onion.
3. In a small bowl, whisk together the oil, cilantro, lime juice and zest, cumin, oregano, chili powder, garlic, and salt and pepper.
4. Combine the dressing with the quinoa mixture. Dice the avocado and add to the salad. 
5. Refrigerate and allow the flavors to blend for at least a couple hours before serving.

Kitchen Notes: I halved the tomatoes rather than quartered, but would have preferred them quartered, which is why I wrote the recipe this way. Unlike a lot of recipes with avocado, the avocado remains fresh and green for several days. I underseasoned because I ate the salad mixed with hot sauce, red pepper sauce, or tomatillo sauce.

Verdict: Super yummy and a great way to use up complementary leftover produce in fridge. This is totally a texture dish, each of the components patchworks itself into a tasty, meal worthy salad.

Quinoa Tabbouleh: Now with Video!

If you'd like a traditional tabbouleh, please search elsewhere. I love tabbouleh, it's easy, it's one of my favorite summer salads, it's filling and refreshing. Sometimes, though, I stray from the typical tabbouleh. This one features quinoa rather than the typical bulgar wheat. I made this with leftover quinoa.

Please excuse the messy picture!

Quinoa Tabbouleh (makes about 3 C)

• 2C quinoa, cooked
• 3 large handfuls parsley, finely chopped (about 1 small bunch)
• 1/2 med cucumber, diced
• 2 small tomatoes, diced
• 1/4 red onion, diced
• juice of 3 lemons (about 6 Tbsp)
• zest of 1 lemon
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 garlic clove, finely diced
• salt to taste
• pepper to taste

1. In a small bowl, whisk together the lemon juice, zest, olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper. Set aside.
2.Combine the quinoa, parsley, cucumber, tomato, and onion in a large bowl. Mix together.
3.Combine the quinoa mixture and the lemon juice mixture together. Allow to sit for a few hours for the flavors to develop. 


Kitchen Notes: Tabbouleh is traditionally a parsley salad with a higher ratio of parsley than grain, the grain is to absorb the juices. Folks who like a more grain based tabbouleh will need to adjust the ratio. This seems like a lot of lemon, but trust me, it works.

Verdict? I'm still salivating over my quinoa salad with lemon vinaigrette, so comparatively speaking, it was a bit bland. It was refreshing and palate cleansing, and a good meal for a hot day, but I prefer the other quinoa salad.

Update: My friend Katie sent me this hysterical link, the tabbouleh song, from the comic Remy Munasifi. If you didn't  think tabbouleh needed an anthem before, this video may make you change your mind:
 

Quinoa Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette

This past weekend, in St. Louis, my husband and I stumbled upon a fantastic little place in St. Louis, La Dolce Via. I had the spinach torta with a side of field greens with a rocking lemon vinaigrette. I felt compelled to try at home.

If you've never had a quinoa salad, try one now. Yum. A beautiful alternative to traditional tabbouleh & pasta salads. The inspiration again, comes from one of my favorite food bloggers, Kevin of Closet Cooking, with the recipe by me. 

Quinoa Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette (serves 4-6)
For the Vinaigrette:

• 1/3 C extra virgin olive oil
• 1/4 C red wine vinegar
• juice & zest of 1-2 lemons
• 2 cloves garlic, very finely minced
• salt 
• pepper
• large handful of dill, chopped

1.   Mix ingredients 

For the Salad

• 1 C quinoa, uncooked
• small tomato, diced
• small zucchini, cut into small wedges
• 1/4 C red onion, finely diced
• 1/4 feta crumbled

1. Rinse quinoa in a fine mesh strainer. Bring quinoa, 1 1/2 C water, and a pinch of salt to a boil. Cover, and cook for 15 mins. Remove from heat, fluff, and let it remain covered for 10 mins. Let cool.
2. Mix together quinoa, veggies, feta & vinaigrette. Serve cool or at room temperature. 


Verdict? Hooray! I love, love, the texture of quinoa, and I love, love, the fresh flavor of lemon. Makes an ideal lunch.