Quinoa Soup

I keep reading about quinoa. How it's amazingly nutritious, it's higher in protein than any real grain, and is even a complete protein. I remember my midwife suggesting I eat quinoa more often since I always seemed to lack sufficient protein. I enjoyed reading this blog about quinoa.

I finally gave in. I found a recipe for Quinoa Soup in my Colorado Farmer's Market cookbook. (Love this cookbook.) I altered it a bit for my taste and what was on hand, and it turned out darn good. Here's my version:

1 Tbsp. olive oil
1/2 c. diced red onion
1 stalk celery, diced
1 cup cooked blackbeans
1 potato, peeled and chopped
1 carrot, peeled and chopped
1 Tbsp dried parsley
1 clove garlic, minced
6 cups turkey broth
1/2 cup quinoa

Sautee all the veggies and garlic in olive oil for about 5 minutes, till onions are tender.



Add the broth. I used broth made from the bones of some turkey leg quarters I smoked last weekend - fantastic flavor that broth has, I tell ya. Bring to a boil.



Add the quinoa. I know it doesn't look like much, but if you've ever cooked with quinoa, you'll know that it expands. A lot. Half a cup is plenty.

Bring it back to a boil, then cover and simmer about 45 minutes till the quinoa is soft.

Serve with a side of homemade bread or corn bread and some homemade raw butter, and enjoy! Even Littlest One loved this, and she's not the best soup eater.

Turkey Tortilla Soup

I've got lots of turkey around here right now. Here's a soup recipe I concocted tonight when I realized I'd forgotten to take any meat out to thaw for my originally planned dinner.

Turkey Tortilla Soup

1/4 c red onion, diced
1/4 c chopped bell pepper
3 cloves garlic
olive oil for cooking the above veggies - maybe a Tbsp or so.
1 1/2 quarts turkey broth, skimmed and brought to room temp.
1 1/2 cups cooked turkey, diced
2 cups cooked black beans in 1/2 cup liquid (assuming you cooked dried black beans. Or, use 1 can of black beans.)
2 cups diced tomatoes with liquid
1 cup frozen corn
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp oregano
sea salt and pepper to taste
8 corn tortillas, cut into strips
grated cheese for garnish

Start to finish, assuming you have this stuff in the fridge and ready to go, is only about 15 minutes.

Saute the onions, peppers and garlic in olive oil til soft. Add the remaining ingredients, except the tortillas and cheese. Stir well, bring to a boil, then simmer for 10-15 minutes.

Put the tortilla strips into four bowls. Ladle the hot soup on top of the tortillas, garnish with cheese and serve.

Makes 4 servings, plus leftovers for tomorrow's lunch. :o)

Notes about making this from scratch:
The turkey was one I smoked recently, then deboned and saved the meat in meal-sized portions. The carcass was simmered and produced 1 1/2 gallons of broth, currently chilling in the fridge. Diced tomatoes, peppers and onions would ideally come from the freezer, having been grown in the garden last summer. Sadly, I had to use store-bought since my pantry stores are depleted already. Except for peppers - always plenty of diced peppers. The corn was purchased fresh from a local grower, then cut off the cob and frozen to last the winter. If you're cooler than me, you'll have homemade corn tortillas on hand. I don't - haven't gotten there yet, but hopefully soon.

Bon Apetit!

Red Chili

Here's a secret: chili is not supposed to come from a can.

Shhh. Don't tell. ;o)

Yes, it takes all day to make chili like this. The good news is that it doesn't require much supervision, just some stirring once in awhile when you happen to walk by the stove. Just pick a day when you'll be home, and it's not really that much work.

Homemade Red Chili:

3 cups dried beans (pinto, kidney, anasazi, or a mix)
4 cups tomato sauce
2 cups diced tomatoes
1 diced bell pepper
1 diced onion
4 cloves garlic
1 lb ground elk (or beef)
1 lb sausage (breakfast or Italian, whatever you like - I use homemade Italian elk sausage.)
chili powder - as much as you like.

Start early: soak the beans overnight, or do a "quick soak" in the morning. Once they're soaked, rinse them and drain them and simmer them in fresh water until they're nearly soft (usually about three hours.) Drain the beans, leaving about 1-2 cups of the liquid in the pot with them. Add the tomato sauce and diced tomatoes.

Saute the pepper, onion and garlic until tender. Add to pot. In same pan, brown meat and sausage together, breaking up into very small pieces. Add the meat to the pot once it's finished cooking. Taste, then add chili powder, then taste again, and add some more, until it's just right.

Simmer on very low heat 2-3 hours , or until dinner time. Add a bit of water if it starts to get dry. Don't add salt until just before serving - beans don't soften in salted liquid and you want the beans to get as soft as they will before you put salt in.

---

This recipe makes a LOT of chili - fills my 5-quart soup pot nearly to the top. Either eat the leftovers for lunch the next day, or freeze meal-sized portions to pack in your husband's lunch box. This makes a nice "convenience meal" for the nights when you really don't feel like cooking, too.