Mediterranean Red Quinoa Salad

I amaze myself sometimes. Thinking back over my childhood, "Growing Up Hippie" in Big Sur, all the communes' crazy folks 'n' weird situations 'n' funky log cabins 'n' wood stoves for cooking and heat, outhouses with little moons on the doors (which put a new spin on the term "funky"), long and treacherous trails that went on seemingly for an eternity just to get home from The Road, a/k/a Highway 1 . . . schlepping groceries 'n' laundry 'n' wood 'n' this, that 'n' the other . . . you'd think -- actually, I'd think -- that would've made me hate it all! But quite the contrary, I love the distinctive smell of wood stoves and rustic old cabins under the sky-scraping Redwoods -- I still have an affection for all of it. And even for the food that was cooked up in these humble little places, so many, many moons ago -- although as in the case at hand, I have. shall we say, rehabilitated some of those recollections.

See, I've been doing a lot of experimenting with those culinary memories, using some of the freshest and healthiest ingredients to do so, and this particular instance involves red quinoa, something I'm sure as a child I vowed never to eat again as long as I lived, along with wheat berries, brown rice, avocados, beans, mushrooms, tofu -- all foods I now love; the list was so long you can't even fathom it. I was convinced at the time my mom was making me eat these foods just to torture me, and when I would arrive at school with one of her famous "Rock Bread Avocado Sprout Sandwiches," I would promptly find some gullible waif toting a bologna-on-white to trade with me. This set me well on my way to a career in crime, door-to-door sales, tending bar or food blogging. Take your pick, 'cause I've done 'em all. And of all the things I've done nothing makes me happier than making things taste delicious, so try this one out on your family to keep them happy AND healthy!

Mediterranean Red Quinoa Salad:

In a saucepan with put:

2 cups red quinoa

With 2 tbs. olive oil, sauté until it gives off a nice aroma, about five minutes.

Then add:

3 cups chicken stock OR water with bouillon

Reduce to simmer and cook 15 minutes. Remove from heat and remove top, fluff with fork and allow to set awhile and cool. Meanwhile get all this stuff together in a really large bowl:

1 bunch fresh basil, chopped

4 cloves garlic, pressed

1/4 cup olive oil

1/4 cup lemon juice

3 tomatoes, chopped OR 1 package grape tomatoes, all halved

3 medium cucumbers, chopped

1/2 -3/4 cup chopped Kalamata olives

1 6- to 8-oz package of feta cheese, chopped or crumbled

Add the still-warm quinoa to the rest of the ingredients and toss. Salt and pepper to taste if necessary; the bouillon cubes, olives and feta are all very salty, so really taste before shaking out any more at this point. Serve at room temp.

Serve at room temp.

And as always, Enjoy!!!
LIVE, LOVE, LAUGH, COOK!!!
© Jennifer Green Alger 2010

Gluten Free Blueberry Muffins

Hey there! Hi there! Ho there! Jenni of Jenni's Dish reporting live from the great land of LaLa, where people buy convertibles and refuse to put their tops down. And in this neck of the woods it seems like the blinker, yeah, that thing attached to the steering wheel that's actually meant to let the cars around you know what which way you're headed, is as antiquated as I am, being that on recent birthday I turning 39 . . . AGAIN.

But there's something here in the land of swimming pools and movie stars that is extremely popular right now which at first seemed to me to be borderline ridiculous. But I have since come to think it is such a great concept that I have been sucked into the vortex of advocating for it just like every Tom, Dick and Hayley in this town who believes in the healthier alternatives. It's gluten-free baking, and I, my fine friends, am, as they say "on it"!!!

The goodies at hand came out of nowhere after a trip to Whole Foods, where I delved into the land of alternatives to wheat flour. Remember the gluten-free cake I made not long ago? Well, I got such great reviews on it that it has become one of my basic recipe mainstays. I won't bore you with the scientific details; all you have to do is follow some simple rules of thumb and success can be yours.

First things first: Brown rice flour when used alone tastes like sand, yes, sand -- I mean majorly gross. So I've switched to a mixture of white rice flour and tapioca flour and now, Voliá, I have figured it out. Using these basics will bring the house down every time, so don't be afraid, the water's wonderful, jump right in!

Gluten-Free Blueberry Muffins:

Preheat oven to 350ºF. Line or grease 16 muffin tins, set aside, gather your ingredients:

Dry:

1-1/2 cups white rice flour

3/4 cup tapioca flour

2 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup Splenda or sugar or a blend of both

Wet:

1/3 cup honey

3/4 cup milk at room temp

1/2 cup applesauce

2 eggs at room temp

2 tsp. vanilla

1/4 cup canola oil

2 cups fresh blueberries, cleaned and tossed with 1 tbs. flour

Mix all Dry ingredients and set aside

Mix all wet ingredients well and slowly add to Dry ingredients until well combined. Fill tins 3/4 full and bake for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in muffin comes out clean. Let cool for 10 minutes in tins, continue to cool on rack, serve warm.

And as always, Enjoy!!!

LIVE, LOVE, LAUGH, COOK!!!

© Jennifer Green Alger 2010

Dakota and Montana's Enchilada Pie for Girls on the GO-GO!!!!!

Rus Gib Rehearsal at Rocky Creek House

Jeremiah Slate, Kim Candler, Jennifer Green, Brian Moore

                                 BSTV, Variety Show House Band, Greg Fredricks, Judy Share
This is a great recipe I've been making for years, that's good for lunch , brunch,  dinner, or anytime! It's been with me since I can remember, back in the day's of keeping so busy, I'm not even sure now how we did it!. A lot of my older recipe's were born, of being in the restaurant biz, and doing live theatre, w/ "The Big Sur Players",  Jeremiah Slate, and Kim Candler, founders, we were doing Plays, in the form of  "dinner theatre", and a weekly variety show, live, called "B.S.T.V.",in which our sudonym's were Dakota, and Montana,  and  whom had also formed a band, Rus Gib, (Big Sur backwards), and a band, I had formed, with my old friend Paul Stern, called "South Coast Scandal", which could not have been more appropriate, and working constantly, without much time for anything else. As if that wasn't enough, and I lived in Palo Colorado Canyon, north of Big Sur, and my place of employment, and place of most of our theatre performances, still my favorite job of all time, was The River Inn,  in Big Sur, so commuting back and forth, we were always stressed for time, there just wasn't enough of it in one day for us!!!! Whenever we had down time, a rare occurrence, my best friend Kim and I, would hide out at her house, or mine, and cook, and eat, and try to regain our strength, so we could go right back out, to see "The Young Presidents", our favorite band, and friends, play in Monterey, and dance, like Go-Go- Girls straight out of the sixtys, dressed to fit the part, of course, till we dropped. If we had time, on the way, we'd stop and go shopping at high speed, for new outfits, and change in the car. We were on over-drive, ready to Rock and Roll. And as we lived pretty much next door to each other, she and I, pretty much lived, worked, commuted, and performed, acted/sang, wrote, cooked, and partied together. We were a comedy team the likes, of, Tina and Amy of SNL , w/a little dash of "Romy and Michelle" meets, Patsy and Eddy of "Absolutely Fabulous"! I know, right?

Kim and Jen Rockin it with Rus Gib

More fun was never had by two humans, doing everything, or absolutely nothing. We cracked ourselves up, and anyone around us, and it was so contagious. Life was good, we were young, and having the time of our lives! With nothing but energy, and creativity, and insane work ethics,  I get tired just thinking about it! So this, "PIE"is one of the things I would throw together, that could be eaten either sitting down, or much more often than not, on the run. She is still my BFF, after all these years and living 3000, miles apart, and this post is for her!
        And I'd also like to mention that my Mom, Louise(see pic) was at every gig we did. Rain or shine, acting or singing, rehearsing or performing, cheering us on, we love you Louise. In later years Kim had a baby, True, and Louise was her baby nurse, helping her adjust to motherhood, life had changed we had all gone, our different ways, an era was over. But not one of us will ever forget, how much magic we had made happen! Peace!

My Mom, Louise, Bob, Kevin and Perry at rehearsal of I Hate Hamlet

Preheat oven to 350º,
In a well greased pie pan, Place a layer of Tortilla's to cover bottom and sides,
then alternate, beans, cheese, chiles, olives, a little bit of enchilada sauce, saving the majority of sauce, to pour over finished pie, and cheese, and olives, enough to sprinkle generously, on top.

Dakota and Montana's Enchilada Pie for Girl's on the Go-Go!!!!!

1 Package Flour or Corn Tortillas
1  10 oz. can refried beans 
2 sm cans Ortega Green Chiles (diced) 
1 8 oz. Package cheddar Cheese
1 8 oz. package Monterey Jack or Pepper Jack Cheese
1 can black olives (sliced & optional)
1 10 oz. can Enchilada Sauce
Cover and Bake in a 350º oven for 20-30 minutes, uncover and bake 10-15 minutes or until bubbly and  lightly browned. Remove from oven and let sit, at least a 1/2 an hour to set, and it will slice just like pie!
Serve w/ Sour Cream

and
Salsa Fresca:

2 med lg. tomatoes chopped 
1/3 cup chopped cilantro
1/3 cup chopped green onion
1 lg. Jalapeno (pickled or fresh) seeded and chopped
juice of one lime
drizzle of olive oil
Salt to taste.

                                 Jerimiah Slate, Judy Share, Jennifer Green, Kim Candler in"I Hate Hamlet"
And as always, Enjoy!!!
LIVE,LOVE,LAUGH,COOK!!!
© Jennifer Green Alger 2009