Monday, March 5, 2012

Quinoa Bites (Num Nums)

I fell into a snack and lunch slump. This realization hit me hard between the eyes because of the following conversation I had with the Lil Man.

Me: What would you like to have for lunch today?
LM: Mac and Cheese
Me: I haven't made any and we don't have any Annie's. Any other ideas?
LM: A quesadilla
Me: Well, we don't have any tortillas. Anything else?
LM: Grilled cheese sandwich.
Me: Ya, it is time for us to change things up. 

I realized I was stuck in a cheese rut. This wasn't my usual MO, but we were in it and we were in it deep. I looked inside my fridge and one of the veggie compartments was filled with 3 different bags of cheese, plus two bricks. Yikes.

New day. New leaf. I have approximately 6 pounds of quinoa sitting in my pantry and I need to use it. We tried these quinoa bites today and the Lil Man suggested that we call them "Num Nums". Alrighty then. He ate 6 and Lil Miss ate 2. I consider that a success. 

The veggies combinations you can add in are numerous. I used kale, broccoli and carrots. Other options might be peas, squash, spinach, chard, corn, or cauliflower. This is an easy way to use those leftover veggies from dinner the night before. 

I served them up with some apple rings (use an apple corer to take out the core and then slice into thin slices). The kids ate two apples worth and had fun pretending they had apple eyes, apple ears and apple noses. Who knew cutting the fruit a different way would make it a renewed hit?

So here you go...ENJOY!

Quinoa Bites
Adapted from The Curvy Carrot

Makes 24 bites

Ingredients:
  • 1/2 cup quinoa
  • 1 cup water
  • olive oil
  • 1 1/2 cups of finely chopped veggies 
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 tablespoons whole wheat flour
  • 1/2 tsp curry
  • kosher salt and pepper to taste
Preheat oven to 325.

Directions:
1) Put water and quinoa into a saucepan. Bring to a boil and keep covered for 15 minutes or until water is absorbed. Fluff with a fork and remove from heat. 
2) Grease a mini muffin pan with olive oil.
3) In a bowl, combine all ingredients, except for salt and pepper. Mix well.
4) Using a tablespoon, fill mini muffin pan cups. Press contents firmly into the base of the pan. Sprinkle salt and pepper over the top.
5) Bake for 15 minutes. To remove from pan, use a butter knife to slide around the edges if there is any sticking. Serve with your favorite dipping sauce or plain!


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11 comments:

  1. Yum! I have yet to try Quinoa. This may be where I start.

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    1. They are really easy and yummy! I like that they are versatile and you can add any veggies of choice.

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  2. I also have several pounds of quinoa in my pantry. It's quite the super food. These look delicious!

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    1. Let me know if you have any favorite recipes. We need to work our way through the bags!

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  3. Mmm, these sound delicious. You are reminding me of these multigrain fritters we used to make all the time. I actually posted about it here if you are interested: http://mommyrepeat.blogspot.com/2011/09/are-you-going-to-finish-that.html

    I will definitely try your recipe and will be making some more of our fritters someday soon too. Thanks for the reminder!

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    Replies
    1. I am on my way to check them out! Thanks for the suggestion :)

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  4. Can't wait to try! I'm totally looking for a better way to cook Quinoa.

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    1. Me too! Please come back and share any favorites :)

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  5. Val, I tried these today for lunch. They're delicious! I used spinach and carrots and threw in about 1/3 c. grated parmesan. We used homemade roasted garlic hummus for dipping. Thanks for sharing, this is a great recipe!

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  6. Interesting... perhaps it's time for me to purchase some Quinoa. Is it really a super food? Val, I'm afraid you may turn me into a total health nut soon. Lol! I will NOT give up my cookies though. :-)

    Hugs,
    ~Rosann

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  7. My daughter always asked for "num nums" when she wanted to nurse, so I laughed at the title. Quinoa is one of my very favorite foods, just with coconut oil, nutritional yeast, and sea salt. The most awful thing is that I seem to have developed a sensitivity to it, and I get really nauseous for a few hours after I eat it. I've tried rinsing it with hot water to remove the saponins, but it doesn't seem to help. I hope I get over it...your recipe looks really yummy!

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