Quinoa and Bean Salad

Formula: Combine 2 cups cooked grains + 2 cups beans + 2 to 3 cups veggies + 5 oz. spinach + 1/2 cup cheese or olives + 1/2 cup nuts and seeds + 1 cup vinaigrette dressing. Prepare the quinoa Rinse in a fine mesh strainer: 1/2 cup dry quinoa In a medium saucepan over …

Best Recipe: Turkey Taco Salad

Cook's notes: This recipe is adapted from Alaska from Scratch, and it's just terrific. The turkey mixture is enough for 6 servings. Leftovers are great for lunch. Note that the raw garlic in the dressing gets more pungent overnight. This salad has an excellent combination of flavors and textures, and the recipe is quite flexible. Make …

Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Chickpeas

Cook's notes: Modified from a Minimalist Baker recipe. I usually cook sweet potatoes in the microwave for convenience, but you really can't beat the caramelization of the sweet potato when they roast in the oven. The chickpeas are delicious. This dish goes well with sauteed spinach or a salad. 2 large sweet potatoes, scrubbed with peel …

Pumpkin Chicken Enchiladas

Updated 31-May-2022: Consolidated duplicate recipe with this one. Updated 14-Oct-2018: The recipe is offline at the original site, so I have the instructions below. Cook's notes: This excellent recipes uses a full can (15 oz) of plain pumpkin puree. The enchiladas are hearty, and leftovers freeze well. I omitted the jalapeno and red pepper flakes. …

Review: Turkey Taco Casserole

Cook's notes: I made this for a friend's birthday party, and it turned out quite well. The author, Lauren Keating, notes that ground chicken has a "delicate flavor [that] allows the salsa and beans to take center-stage." I used mild salsa instead of hot and plain olive oil (not chili oil) and added lots of …

VB6 Lunches

I recently read Mark Bittman's book VB6, because I needed inspiration for lunch ideas. The focus of the book is eating more vegetables, fruits, and grains. Here are some lunch ideas inspired by Bittman's book. You'll notice each one includes a large green salad (see the "Daily Salad" post for more ideas). Have fresh fruit for …