Egg Scramble with Spinach, Sausage, & Quinoa

This week's 'Recipe of the Week' is an adaptation from the blog Sweet Remedy.  There are a lot of opportunities to personalize this to your own tastes, so use the recipe as a guide.  We had this egg scramble for dinner, but it would make a great protein-rich breakfast.

Adapted from Sweet Remedy

Egg Scramble with Spinach, Sausage, & Quinoa
Ingredients:
1/2 cup uncooked quinoa
1 cup water
1/2 lb ground sausage
1 Tbsp butter
1/4 cup diced onion
4 eggs
Splash of milk
Salt & pepper to taste 
Cheese (try shaved Parmesan or feta)

 Instructions:
Simmer 1/2 cup quinoa in 1 cup water, covered, about 15 minutes, or until water is absorbed. Set aside.
While quinoa is cooking, brown sausage in a large skillet, remove, drain grease.
In same skillet, melt butter, saute diced onion.
Beat eggs with milk, then add to skillet.  Add salt and pepper to taste if desired.
When eggs are nearly cooked (scrambled), add 2 handfuls of spinach (torn), quinoa, and sausage.
Continue cooking until spinach is wilted and eggs are cooked to your liking.  At the last minute, add cheese of your choice (recommend feta).

Enjoy!

Why I Love Couscous More Than Rice

Actually, I love my husband more than both couscous and rice (Happy Valentine's day, hubby!).  But, I was reminded this week of why couscous is so great.  I'll admit I haven't bought it in a while because I tend to get sticker shock every time I look at it on the grocery shelf.  However, I got a free package recently (I love stores that send out birthday coupons!)

I made this Real Simple recipe for a lunch I shared with my Bible study ladies this past week and it was a hit. 

Photo Source

Couscous Salad with Grapes and Feta, served with homemade pita bread

Now on to why I love couscous more than rice.  

Side note: I am aware that couscous and rice are fundamentally different (pasta vs. grain), but they can be interchangeable in some recipes, probably more than I've experimented with.  I also know there are a lot of questions about which is healthier, rice or couscous.  Frankly, I don't split hairs about the nutritional value of most things I eat.

The real reason I love couscous more than rice is because couscous makes great leftovers!  Compared to rice, which gets sticky or hard upon reheating, couscous maintains its original yummy form day after day.  I especially love how versatile couscous is; it's delicious warm or cold!  The salad above is served cold, for example, so eating the left overs takes no prep time at all.  

 

Shrimp & Tomato Faux-Sotto

After 2 weeks of complete lack of meal planning, I'm back on it this week.  My husband's schedule got so crazy there at the end of January, we only ate 1 home cooked, planned meal together in about 2 weeks.  While I was clipping along in my meal planning rhythm, I failed to realize quickly enough how few meals he would be eating at home.  So, I bought way too much food and my meal calendar for the past week shows left overs, left overs, left overs.  You get the picture.  

So I've learned while meal planning is ubber helpful, it pays to also be able to react quickly to changes in schedules.  I'm sure your family has your own crazy weeks.  What do you do to adapt quickly to changing schedules?  What is your strategy for those weeks when you know members of your family will be eating meals at different times of the day?  Maybe crock pot meals or large casseroles are best for these weeks.

I must note the 1 meal we shared together at home was DE-licious.  My friend Kara shared it with me and it can be found here.

Dreamy Shrimp & Tomato Faux-sotto from Hungry Girl This dish is easy to make, healthy, hearty, and flavorful!!

(The following is copied from the author with my comments added)

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups finely chopped cauliflower
1 cup diced onion
3/4 cup fat-free or nearly fat-free chicken broth
1/2 cup uncooked brown rice
1/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil, drained, patted dry, chopped (I used cherry tomatoes, but sun-dried would have been better)
1 tsp. chopped garlic
1/8 tsp. salt, or more to taste
1/8 tsp. black pepper, or more to taste
6 oz. raw medium-sized shrimp, peeled, tails removed, deveined
2 wedges The Laughing Cow Light Creamy Swiss cheese, room temperature
1/4 cup fat-free sour cream
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil (I used dried, which worked fine)

Directions:
In a medium nonstick pot on the stove, combine all ingredients except shrimp, cheese wedges, sour cream, and basil. Add 1 cup water and stir well. Bring to a boil.

Once boiling, reduce heat to medium-low. Cover and allow to simmer until rice is just cooked and veggies are tender, 30 - 35 minutes. Add shrimp to the pot and mix well. Re-cover and continue to cook for about 5 minutes, until shrimp are fully cooked.

Add cheese wedges and sour cream, and stir until cheese has melted and both ingredients are evenly dispersed. Add basil and gently stir. Continue to cook, uncovered, for about 2 minutes, to allow the basil flavor to develop.

If you like, season to taste with additional salt and pepper. Serve and enjoy!

MAKES 2 SERVINGS (We had enough for a lunch the next day)

 Enjoy!

 

eBook Winner & New Tested Recipes

Thanks for your interest in the Plan It, Don't Panic ebook giveaway.  And the winner is...
             Beth!  
You will be receiving your free pdf copy via email shortly.

If you missed out on this giveaway and you're interested in the book (see my review), head over to Keeper of the Home and purchase the book for just $4.99.

***********************************************************************************
This week I tried some new recipes that were all very tasty.
Here are some links and my comments:

Chicken Santa Fe by Lea

Crockpot Chicken Santa Fe from Closet Cooking:
I made this into a 'quick' meal (no crock pot) using canned shredded chicken from our butcher shop.  In place of fresh cilantro, I thawed some cilantro sauce mixed in with everything else.

Baked Oatmeal by Lea

 
Baked Oatmeal To-Go from The Faux Martha:
Great for a quick breakfast on the go!

  
 Meatloaf (beef) adapted from 'Kara's Meatloaf' in my workplace cookbook: The secret ingredient is oats! 
1  lb. ground beef
1  egg
½  cup skim milk
1  cup oats (old fashioned)
chopped onion (to taste)
½  teaspoon salt
Sauce 
²/₃  cup ketchup   
½  cup brown sugar  
worchestire sauce (to taste)

1.    Mix egg and milk together 
2.    Add oats and mix 
3.    Add onion and salt 
4.    Combine all ingredients with the ground beef 
5.    Form into loaf in greased bread pan 
6.    Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour or until done 
7.  Spread sauce on top of loaf after 30 minutes; keep some reserve for dipping, or make extra

Pair with mashed potatoes and a green vegetable

Menu Themes & A Free Book Offer!

Stephanie Langford from Keeper of the Home just released a new e-book called Plan It, Don't Panic: Everything You Need to Successfully Create and Use a Meal Plan. 

This handy e-book will walk you through various methods of meal planning, with specific examples, to help you figure out what works for you!  You'll learn tips on planning healthy meals, effectively using leftovers and what's stocked in your pantry, and how to save money and time in the process.  Also included are several printable worksheets from List PlanIt to keep you organized. 

Here's something to try with your upcoming meal planning session.  Create a theme list and fill in the week with meals that match the theme of the day.

Mon: Chicken

Tue: Soup
Wed: Fish

Thur: Ethnic

Fri: Crock pot

Sat: Leftovers

Sun: Breakfast for Dinner

This week I received a free copy of the book to give away for writing a review on Amazon.  So here's how you can be entered into a drawing to win a free copy of this book (3 entries per person):  

1. Post a comment telling me why you would like a this book, or what your goals are this year for meal planning.
2. Visit Keeper of the Home and post a comment here sharing one thing you learned. 
3. Tell me if you follow Lea's Corner Kitchen

Entries will be accepted until Sunday, January 22nd at 5pm.  I'll use a random number generator to select the winner and announce it on Monday, January 23rd.

Happy planning!

Meal Planning

I've mentioned I'm new at this meal planning concept.  I continue to try and plan each week with a well-rounded combination of meals, including several new recipes.  Sometimes, however, I get a little lost in what sounds good and forget to look at the plan from that 'well-rounded' vantage point.  This happened last week when I ended up with lots of heavy, rich meals.

Mon: Ham, spinach, and cheese quiche (New Recipe!) 
Tues: Tortellini topped w/ pesto, feta, walnuts
Wed: Honey barbecue turkey meatloaf, broccoli, potatoes
Thur: Sweet potato soup
Fri: Homemade pizza
Sat-Sun: Left overs


So this week is a recovery week.  Also, this week my husband is not eating any meals at home, as he is working night shifts at the hospital.  So, the meals are chosen a bit more to my personal style!

Mon: Sweet tomato basil bisque (New Recipe & Shockingly Delicious!)
Tues: Fresh veggie wraps (New Recipe!)
Wed: Tortellini w/ red sauce
Thur: Lentil quinoa salad
Fri: Traveling

Homemade Granola

Recently, I've been trying to revampt my approach to common menu items, namely moving from boxed foods to from-scratch alternatives.  I've had success with homemade bagels, pizza crust, dish washer detergent, and granola. Anyone have a good recipe for pancakes sans Bisquick? 

Among leaving several friends behind in OH this year, I also lost my favorite cereal, Blueberry Flax Granola.  It is a store brand (cheaper!) granola cereal.  While all the Kashi cereals I've tried are delicious, I can't bring myself to spend 5-6 dollars on a box of cereal.  So, the quest for homemade granola began.

There are a thousand variations, of which I've tried several: oil-free pumpkin granola, maple almond granola, and applesauce granola.

My recipe of choice is a combination of these:

Granola by Lea

Mix these liquid ingredients together in a large bowl:
- 2 Tbsp maple syrup
- 1 Tbsp honey
- 1/4 cup unsweetened (homemade) applesauce

Add these dry ingredients to the bowl and mix until well coated:
- 2 cups old fashioned rolled oats
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 cup wheat germ

Bake a 300 for 35 minutes.  Keep an eye on this, stirring every 7-10 minutes.  Cool completely and store in air tight container.   Add mix-in's (almonds, walnuts, sunflower seeds, craisins, blueberries) as desired. 

Quiche with Homemade Crust

Finally, a quiche success!  I tried this Ham, Spinach & Gruyére Quiche from A Cozy Kitchen last night and it was so good.  I've never made my own crust before, and I felt a little bad using a whole stick of butter.  But then I thought, "what must be in those store-bought or restaurant crusts/quiches?"  At least it's home cooking.

What is fun about quiche is that once you get the basic crust and filling down, you can add whatever mix-ins you want.  In this recipe, I just substituted whole milk with skim milk and Gruyére cheese with shredded mozzarella. Delicious!