Convinced

So I’ve been on this quinoa kick.

(For those of you who are looking at that word with a quizzical look, it’s pronounced /keen-wah/. Want to learn about it? Check out this link: http://vegetarian.about.com/od/glossary/g/whatisquinoa.htm.)

I really want to find (healthy) alternatives to the usual rice or the forbidden couscous… and quinoa was something that I had heard a lot about, but never really tried. I was in my beloved Wegman’s a while ago, saw the package in the gluten free section and entered into the realm of the impulse purchase. (I do that. A lot.)

The big question mark on this journey into all things quinoa was my sweet husband. Tim loves - as I’ve mentioned in previous blog posts - meat and potatoes, broccoli and rice, pasta, seafood and all the other basics of cooking. He can be… wary… of the introduction of substitutions for the “real” stuff. Quinoa would fit into that definition. Considering the fact that my husband NEVER complains about what I make for dinner (including the occasional bowl of cereal), I try to be mindful and experiment more with my mom… who, culinarily speaking, is up for basically anything.

My first experiment with quinoa was the vegetable quinoa soup, also found on this blog. It is amazing. The problem, though, was that the flavor of the quinoa was masked by all the other strong flavors going on in the soup. The quinoa really served as a texture in the soup… to give it more body. It didn’t get to shine.

So, round two. Quinoa Patties, again found on this blog. YUM. These were sampled only by my mom and me and we both agreed they were creamy, comforting… and the garlic mayo set it over the top. When Tim called from work to check in on everyone, I mentioned the quinoa experiment in progress. He was obviously relieved, though he didn’t actually say the words. His voice, however, reeked of relief.

On to round three. This time, he wasn’t getting out of the experiment. I found a recipe on www.soveryblessed.com for Quinoa Pizza Bites and slightly altered it… really just to make it even easier for me to throw together. I made these for dinner last night. My 7-year-old ate it and liked it. My 3-year-old tried it and announced he liked it, but wanted yogurt. (Ah, to be three.) Both my mom and I thought they were delicious and worthy to be put into my recipe arsenal. And my husband… well, he skeptically dove in and found that he really liked it! Said it was "quite good".

I’m so proud of him.

All you need is a little marinara sauce on the side and you’ll be amazed how much these little guys taste like pizza. Oh, and if you want to keep this completely vegetarian, just substitute some diced cherry tomatoes for the pepperoni and it will be equally delicious.

Now – on to round four? I wonder what else I can do with my new friend, Quinoa……

Gluten Free Quinoa Pizza Bites

1 cup uncooked quinoa

2 cups water

2 large eggs

½ to 1 cup onion, chopped

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

2 cloves garlic, minced

3 tsp Italian seasoning

½ tsp salt

½ cup chopped pepperoni (or diced cherry tomatoes)

Place the quinoa and water in a medium saucepan fitted with a lid. Bring to a boil, then lower heat to low and let cook for 20 minutes until tender. Remove from heat and fluff with a fork.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a non-stick muffin tin with non-stick spray.

Mix together all ingredients in a large bowl and distribute mixture into the muffin tin, making 12 muffins.  Press down on each one gently with wet hands to compact.

Bake for 30-35 minutes until golden on the edges. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from the pan. Serve warm with marinara sauce.