In less than three weeks I will be basking in the delicious sunshine of Isla Mujeres, MX, enjoying my 2 for 1 mojitos and huevos machaca for breakfast. I have always had a soft spot for what I thought was Mexican food and margaritas. After my first trip to Isla last year, I realized I had never really had Mexican food, but some relatively tasteless goop on a plate. Although we don't have great traditional Mexican food in Cleveland, we do have great modern takes on the cuisine at Momocho. I crave their cucumber margarita with chile lime salt regularly, and although I never seem to get over there as much as I would like, it's still one of my favorites.

I've waxed poetic about my love for quinoa on this blog several times already, but I'm always on the hunt for new ways to prepare it. About three years ago I got sucked into the vortex that is the Pioneer Woman Empire and found many quinoa recipes on her new recipe site, Tasty Kitchen. I can think of no better way to enjoy the farm fresh sweet corn, cilantro and cherry tomatoes than to make this dish. Even if you aren't a Pioneer Woman fan, you have to try this recipe. I almost think it's better than the "real" thing.

**Sorry for no pictures. I was under the weather yesterday and I just was too hungry to get the camera out!!

Quinoa Taco Salad
***I always make extra of this as it makes great leftovers, with the flavors deepening over time. The recipe originally appeared on Tasty Kitchen and for once, I have made few alterations to it.

1 cup Quinoa
1 whole Red Onion, Chopped
3 cloves Garlic, Minced
½ cups Red Bell Pepper, chopped- I omitted all the peppers as I didn't have any on hand
½ cups Yellow Bell Pepper, Chopped
½ cups Green Bell Pepper, Chopped
1-2 C fresh corn, cut off the cob (Source: FFM)
1-½ teaspoon Cumin
½ teaspoons Oregano
1 teaspoon Chili Powder, Or More Depending On Heat Preference
1 dash Cayenne Pepper
15 ounces, weight Black Beans, Drained And Rinsed
¾ cups Diced Tomatoes, Fresh (Source: FFM)
2 whole Limes, Divided (or lemon juice if it's easier)
Salt And Pepper, to taste
8 ounces, weight Baby Spinach
1 cup Cilantro (Source: FFM)
⅓ cups Cheddar Or Feta Cheese, ** I used the raw milk Gouda cheese from this week's share (Source: Mayfield Creamery, FFM)


Cook the quinoa according to package instructions. I usually do this in the microwave- 5 minutes on high uncovered, 10-15 minutes on medium covered. Use a 1:2 ratio of quinoa to water. Let cool while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.

Meanwhile, swirl a bit of olive oil in a saute pan. Heat oil over medium high heat. Add onion and saute for 3-5 minutes, until translucent and tender. Add garlic, cumin, oregano, chili powder, cayenne and peppers and saute for an additional 2 minutes.

Remove from heat. Stir in the black beans, tomatoes, and the juice of 1 lime. Stir in the quinoa. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Chill. I often skip the chilling process as I'm just too impatient!

Roughly cut baby spinach into strips like you would shred iceberg lettuce for tacos. Remove about 1 cup of cilantro leaves from the bunch, rinse and pat dry, and toss with the spinach. Divide spinach and cilantro mixture evenly among 4 salad plates. Top each plate with a scoop of the quinoa salad. Top each salad with your choice of cheese and diced avocado. Cut the remaining lime into slices to garnish the plates.

I'm a collector. Of recipes, of vintage and sometimes antique kitchen items and linens, cobalt blue glass, of good books, of passport stamps and memories. Growing up in St. Louis one of my favorite memories was checking out garage and estate sales with my mom and cousin during the summer. We'd always find something we absolutely had to have. I distinctly remember the day we picked up a vintage black and white pony purse (not a horse, but the pattern) and some gloves. Playing dress-up was never quite the same after that as store bought princess costumes just didn't seem to pack the same punch. My love affair with things old and "used" grew as the years went by, partially because of the frugality of it, but mostly because I love things with history. There's just something about furniture that has endured the ages or as my grandpa used to say, "They just don't make things the way they used to!"

When I lived in Scotland for a semester my senior year of college I collected china teacups from every town that I visited. I always smile whenever I use them because they bring back a flood of memories from that special time in my life. Although the photo of today's meal is less than impressive, the dish I served it in was a piece I collected from an antique mall near where I went to college. Considering one of our first dates when we first met in college was a picnic, it seemed appropriate to use this dish on a picnic at the Tremont Farmer's Market. Here's to things that last- memories and all.

Carmelized Onion Quinoa and Lentil Salad
** When I was preparing this dish to take to the market, I realized I was out of feta. An atrocity of epic proportions in our home, but I knew that Lucky Penny's stand would be there and could rescue us from our feta-less-ness.






1 C organic quinoa
1 C lentils de puy or any lentils you have on hand (I soak my lentils over night to reduce cooking time)
h2o
1-2 onions, thinly sliced 1/4" on mandoline (Source: FFM)
olive oil
butter (Source: FFM- it's the never ending butter roll!)
parsley (Source: Fire escape garden)
Chives (Source: Fire escape garden)
Cilantro (Source: Tink Holl Market)
Feta (Source: Lucky Penny Farm)
Sriracha Sauce
Lemon juice

Cook your quinoa (1:2 ratio) either in the microwave or on the stove top. Meanwhile, boil your lentils until tender and strain. Melt butter and olive oil in a skillet and toss in the sliced onions. Cook on medium heat until tender and reduce heat to medium low and continue to cook until golden. I never have enough patience for this step so I could probably cook mine a little longer than I do. I have also heard you can caramelize onions in the oven- something I will definitely try next time!

Slightly cool your quinoa and lentils and toss with a little bit of olive oil and lemon juice. S&P (keep in mind the feta will add some salt!), and a few drops of Sriracha Sauce (a little goes a long way here!). Chop up your herbs and toss with the rest of the ingredients. Crumble feta over the top and serve. This is great as leftovers either room temperature or cold, though I have warmed it up a little in the microwave before eating and it was great that way too!

We began our journey into a less meat centric diet about a year and a half ago. I thought the process would be relatively difficult since I couldn't really think of many meatless dishes aside from pasta or those that contained meat substitutes. Considering my type-A personality I was up for the challenge to broaden my "vegetarian" horizons. My first task was to find and subscribe to some vegetarian living blogs. Around this time I also received a free subscription to Bon Appetit magazine which had the most delicious meat free meals. My mouth practically watered looking at the beautiful photography and reading through the recipe lists. By taking the plunge and having relatively low expectations we became huge fans of a variety of grains and of course lentils. One of our favorite discoveries was quinoa- the super "grain." This little guy packs so much flavor and nutrition, making meatless meals a real treat rather than a sacrifice. My husband and I both crave this recipe and we have made countless iterations of it based on what I have in the house. We also fall back on quinoa in lieu of rice or pasta occasionally. My next challenge is locating some organic red quinoa which I hear has an even more fabulous flavor. I will be highlighting other quinoa recipes in the future, so stay tuned!

Quinoa Summer Salad
**I adapted this recipe from one in Bon Appetit magainze that used farro, which at the time I didn't have so I subbed quinoa and it was a masterpiece! The measurements are pretty much all relative and this recipe is so adaptable to what you have on hand and your tastes.  There are very few of what I call "non-negotiable" ingredients in this dish that make it a hit time and time again: the dressing, the feta or goat cheese, green onions, and fresh herbs. The rest is up to you.


1 C quinoa, organic if you can find it
2 C water
blanched green beans (I used edamame because its what I had on hand!)
fresh corn (frozen works too in a pinch, just run it under water and drain)
green onions
fresh herbs- I like to use parsley or cilantro, basil is a little too savory for this recipe so I wouldnt use it (Cilantro source: FFM)
feta or chevre (Source: Blue Jacket Dairy)
spicy grainy mustard
lemon juice
olive oil
garlic or shallot
kosher salt
**if I have grape or cherry tomatoes I halve them and toss 'em in for a little extra color

Cook quinoa either on the stovetop or in the microwave. I like to use the fewest dishes possible so I microwave mine in a big bowl- 1:2 ratio of quinoa to water. Cook uncovered in microwave for 5 min at 100%. Then cover and cook for 10-15 min. on 30%, stopping to stir halfway through. Fluff with a fork and set aside while you chop.

Chop your veggies and herbs. Combine garlic or shallot and kosher salt and press with the back of a spoon into a small bowl to mash the garlic up a bit. Mix lemon juice (usually use about 2 TBL) and grainy mustard (about 1-2 TBL) and olive oil (1-2 TBL) with garlic and salt mixture. Dump your veggies, herbs, and dressing in with the quinoa and toss to coat evenly. S&P and add feta or chevre and toss gently.