Mexican Quinoa with Chicken…

How was everyone’s Thanksgiving? Ours was wonderful- Cassidy seemed to really love Thanksgiving food, which made mommy proud. 🙂 We’ve been eating nothing but leftovers lately, which is awesome, but I’m ready for some different flavors now (I think it’s probably a good idea to lay off the pie for awhile, too). 😉 When I saw a recipe for Mexican quinoa on Annie’s blog, I immediately added the idea to my short list. So glad I did- this exceeded my expectations big time! I really love quinoa any way I can get it, but the addition of chicken, tomatoes, and Mexican spices just puts it over the top.

If you’re feeling hesitant about this recipe, just go for it! Trust me, you’ll love it! Quinoa might sound intimidating and weird, but it’s really not- it’s easy as can be and super yummy! Give this one a try- you’re Thanksgiving-overloaded taste buds will thank you!

Mexican Quinoa with Chicken

1 cup quinoa, thoroughly rinsed
1 1/2 cups water
1 tablespoon olive oil
half an onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 can rotel tomatoes (diced tomatoes with green chiles)
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 boneless, skinless chicken breast, fully cooked and shredded
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon cumin
pinch cayenne pepper
juice from half a lime

shredded cheddar cheese and sour cream for garnish

In a large pot, sauté onion in the olive oil until translucent; about 10 minutes. Add garlic and cook for about a minute. Add water, quinoa, salt, and spices and bring to a boil; reduce heat to medium and cook for 20-25 minutes, until water is absorbed. Stir in beans, tomatoes, chicken, and lime juice. Top with cheese and sour cream if desired. Serves 2.

Recipe source: heavily adapted from Annie’s Eats; originally from Peanut Butter Runner

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Kale, Butternut Squash, and Quinoa Soup…

Thanksgiving is in 6 days!! YAY! And that means my FAVORITE day of the whole year is only 7 days away — Christmas Decorating Day! Forget Black Friday; I’m all about staying home, eating leftovers, and pulling out every single box of Christmas decorations while listening to my favorite Christmas CDs (hello, Amy Grant, Bing Crosby, and Harry Connick, Jr.!). It’s a happy day, I tell you!

But that really has nothing to do with this recipe. I just felt like sharing. 🙂 I recently bought a giant bag of quinoa from Trader Joe’s (LOVE that we have one of those now!) and have been using it like crazy lately. I’ve never used it in a soup before, but I’ve always loved the idea of using quinoa in place of rice or pasta in a soup. I decided to whip something up using the huge amount of kale in my fridge and some frozen chopped butternut squash leftover from baby food-making. 🙂 I loooove the combination of hearty, flavorful kale with the creamy butternut squash. And the quinoa adds a great nuttiness. There are so many textures going on- it makes for one great soup!

Kale, Butternut Squash, and Quinoa Soup

2 cups kale, rinsed and chopped
1 cup quinoa, thoroughly rinsed
1 cup cubed butternut squash
1/3 cup pancetta, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
5 or 6 carrots, chopped
6 cups chicken stock or broth
salt and pepper

In a large stock pot over medium heat, cook the pancetta for 2-3 minutes; add the onion and cook until translucent. Stir in the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add carrots, kale, butternut squash, and salt and pepper and bring to a boil; reduce heat to medium-low and cook for about 15 minutes, until the carrots are tender. Add the quinoa. Cook for about 20 minutes more, until quinoa is translucent. Serves 4.

Recipe source: Sing For Your Supper original

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Some Exciting News!

No…I’m not pregnant. 🙂

I’m happy, happy to officially present to you my new blog, A Little Something Lovely (www.alittlesomethinglovely.com)!! Don’t worry- I’m not letting go of Sing For Your Supper, I just wanted that to be strictly food. But I’ve enjoyed updating you all on other things happening in our lives so much that I decided I needed a separate place just for stuff like that! It’s a place for me to post things like decorating, baby talk, pictures, Cassidy updates, and much more. Joel and I have been working so hard on it and I’m so happy that it’s finally up and ready for viewing!

I’d love it if you’d head over and take a look. And please be sure to let me know what you think; I want your input, for sure!

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Sticky Pumpkin-Cinnamon Cake…

I don’t post political rants. I don’t even post my political opinions. This is a food blog, not a place for me to try to sway others toward my ways of thinking. That’s why I had to chuckle while reading my twitter feed during the days leading up to and during the election.

“Oh, I’m a big, important food blogger with my own cookbook (who doesn’t have one these days?….ok, me…. womp, wah), so naturally, people will change their votes based on my snarky, foul-mouthed tweets…”.  Really? Really??

I just couldn’t help but laugh. In fact, that’s all you can do when people you normally look up to and respect are posting things that are mean, condescending, and downright nasty about others. So food bloggers, let’s stick to what we know – food.  Speaking of food- Thanksgiving is a mere 2 weeks away! Do you know how exciting that is?! Get those cans of pumpkin ready, because the best time of the year (next to Christmastime, of course…duh) is UPON US! Yippee!!!

This cake rocks. Moist, pumpkiny, cinnamony, cake drizzled with sweet, sticky sweetened condensed milk. I’m in love!

Sticky Pumpkin Cinnamon Cake

1 boxed yellow cake mix
1 can pumpkin
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 eggs
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, combine the cake mix, pumpkin, oil, eggs, and cinnamon; beat until smooth. Spread into a greased 9×13 pan; drizzle the melted butter over the top of the batter (I used a knife to swirl the butter into the batter so it would be a little more evenly drizzled over the cake, but you don’t have to do this.) Bake for 25-30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Meanwhile, mix the sweetened condensed milk and cinnamon.

While the cake is still warm, poke holes all over the top using a toothpick or fork. Pour the sweetened condensed milk over the top of the cake and spread evenly. Let sit at room temperature until all the glaze has soaked into the cake. Serve immediately. Serves 12.

Recipe source: Sing For Your Supper original

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