Spicy Southwest Quinoa Salad

If you're one of those people who eats a salad for lunch and gets hungry 3 hours later (or 2 hours later if you have my appetite), this recipe is for you.

Not only is it extremely delicious and quick to put together, it's packed with protein from the chicken and quinoa, making this salad a meal that will truly last you through the day.

I was inspired to make this salad after my summer in Chicago. I regularly visited a restaurant called The Protein Bar, which was famous for stocking its entire menu with protein-heavy and quinoa-filled burritos, bowls, and salads. After having their burrito (or Bar-Rito as they call it) several times, I opted for a southwest salad one day, but requested to have buffalo dressing instead of the much spicier Cholula hot sauce doused on top. What emerged was a delicious combination of flavors that come together quickly to make an easy and filling meal. 

After re-creating it myself several times, I feel it's finally ready to be shared with the public.

To make this salad, you will need:

1 chicken breast, diced into bite-sized pieces
olive oil
1/2 cup uncooked quinoa
1 container Trader Joe's Super 8 Veggie Mix (or bagged salad)
Sprouts
1/2 avocado, cut into chunks
Franks Buffalo Wing Sauce 

Start by making your quinoa. Follow the directions according to the package (I generally boil 1/2 cup of quinoa with 2 cups of water until the kernels crack)

Next, heat a glug of olive oil in a pan on medium heat. Add your chicken and toss on some salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally until chicken is browned.

Next comes the layering. You'll start with your veggie mix as the base. I went with Trader Joe's version because it gives you a nice variety of pre-chopped nutritious veggies for only $2.99. (Side note: I've found this veggie mix to be extremely versatile in other dishes as well - I'll add a cup or two into salads, a stir-fry, a noodle dish, etc. I highly recommend it for new veggie recipe experiments.)

Then add on your sprouts - I went with organic pea shoots for this part, but you can choose whatever is most convenient for you.

Next, add your quinoa.

Then your chicken.

Then your avocado.

Now here comes the fun part. Grab your bottle of buffalo sauce and toss on as much or as little as you'd like, depending on your spice preferences. Give the bowl a stir, sample your creation, and add more if you need to. Enjoy your hearty salad with a glass of cold water.

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Indian Spinach & Tofu

I've always considered myself someone who couldn't really cook convincing Indian food. I always found the spices to be a tad too unfamiliar for my taste buds, and I never trusted myself to re-create something that would taste as good or better than what I could buy at a nearby takeout joint.
Fortunately for me and my budget, this recipe happened.

Introducing deliciously tasty and ridiculously easy Indian Tofu & Spinach. I developed this recipe quickly when I needed to use up some leftover spinach and tofu, and it's become one of my new favorites.
To make enough for one, you will need:

Vegetable oil

1 small block of tofu (about 1x4'), sliced into 1-inch by ½-inch blocks

1 teaspoon cumin

¼ cup red onion, chopped

1-inch piece of ginger

1 teaspoon white pepper

salt and pepper

¼ teaspoon cayenne

¼ teaspoon smoked paprika

3 big handfuls of spinach

¼ cup greek yogurt, plain

garlic salt

Heat the oil in a pan until it's good and hot. Add your tofu and fry until brown on both sides.

While it's cooking, use a food processor or blender to blend red onion and ginger together until finely minced.

When the tofu is done, remove it from the pan and set it aside. Add the cumin to the pan (and add additional oil if needed). Fry for several seconds. Next, add the ginger and red onion mixture and heat for 2 minutes. Add white pepper, salt, pepper, and cayenne. Stir. Add the spinach in batches, letting each round wilt. Next, place the tofu back in the pan and sprinkle in the smoked paprika, heating for 1-2 minutes. Finally, add the greek yogurt and mix until combined. Heat for 1 minute, then scoop onto a plate and serve. Top with garlic salt to taste.

Simple, healthy, and low-cal. Not to mention quick. Can you say go-to dinner recipe?

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Salsa Verde Eggs

My friend Katie and I are two of the biggest foodies you'll ever meet. Our conversations are usually a giant verbal recipe swap. Discussing new ways to use seasonal ingredients and sharing tips and tricks for revamping classic dishes are common themes.

Basically, we like food, and we're not afraid to say it.

Recently, Katie and I were discussing eggs.

Eggs are one of my favorite things to eat. They're incredibly versatile, filling, go great with coffee, and cheap cheap cheap.

And fortunately, Katie was kind enough to share with me one of her favorite ways to revamp plain breakfast eggs.

Introducing, Salsa Verde Eggs:

Simple, spicy, and easy, this dish is my new go-to breakfast.

To make one serving, you will need:

dab butter

2 eggs

a dash of milk

salt & pepper

3-4 tablespoons salsa verde

one handful shredded queso cheese

Start by heating a pan on medium heat. Place a dab of butter on the pan.

Mix your eggs in a bowl with the milk, salt, and pepper.

Pour your eggs into the pan and let them cook, untouched. Just as the bottom of the eggs begin to set, sporadically pour your salsa verde into the egg mixture (if you have any on-hand, this is also a great time to add some broken up tortilla chips to your eggs). Scramble your eggs until cooked. Top with cheese.

Spicy. Cheesy. Delicious.

Thanks Katie!

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Isalita

Whew, this post has been a long time coming.
Last week, my friends and I booked a table at a new restaurant in town - Isalita. Owned by the same man who started Mani Osteria, Adam Baru, the restaurant features unique Mexican tapas developed by Mani's original chef, Brendan McCall.

In the spirit of restaurant week, the chef had prepared a special 3-course menu for $28 per person. Eager to sample the spicy goodies that this new restaurant had to offer, my friends and I began pouring over the menu. 
While we waited, we munched on creamy guacamole, fresh pico de gallo, and unlimited homemade chips. 

Needless to say, giving us unlimited chips was a mistake. I easily could have filled up just on those, and almost did, to be completely honest. I have a tortilla and guacamole problem. If it's in front of me, I eat it!

Fortunately for my chip problem, our entrees came out soon. Joanna and I both started with the salad, a crispy, tangy, and fresh dish that took me by surprise due to its taste and size.

Since Isalita is a tapas style restaurant, most of their dishes are quite small portions meant for sharing with the table. This salad easily could have filled me up on its own, though, and Joanna and I both ended up only eating half of ours so we could save room for our second and third courses.

Mallory got adorable little chorizo sopes. So cute and pretty!

For the second round, Joanna and I each went for enchiladas. Hers was a traditional chicken and cheese, topped with sour cream and radishes. 

I took a leap of faith and went for the enchilada verdea - a delicious and melty tortilla filled with lump crab meat, shrimp, cheese, and salsa verde.

I didn't take any pictures of the filling, because it was honestly a gooey mess, but I can say it was delicious and very unique. As a seafood lover, I'm fond of any shellfish, crab, or shrimp dish, but I'm used to them being prepared in a simpler European style. The salsa verde and jalapeno spices took these flavors to a whole new level, and I would come back again just to get these.

Mallory, who seems to have a knack for picking the most attractive food on the menu, got these fresh and colorful fish tacos for her second course. Crispy battered white fish in a small tortilla topped with a sprinkling of radishes and delicately draping avocado - yum!

I'm a sucker for avocado, so these are another dish I'd definitely come back for.

Finally, the dessert, which we were all completely too full to eat but finished anyway (of course).

This tres leches cake was a synthesis of unique but complimenting flavors, including spongey cake, coconut, three different milks, mango, and kiwi. I'm usually a chocolate desserts-only kind of girl, but even I bought into this cake due to its delicate preparation.

All in all, Isalita is the most unique Mexican restaurant in the area. Be aware that portions are small and meant for sharing, so don't come here looking for a quick, enormous, and cheap mexican meal. Also, appearances can be deceiving. Despite the size of the dishes my friends and I were served, we ended up not being able to finish 5 out of the 6 entrees we ordered due to their richness. Don't be afraid to start small, because many of these (like my enchilada) are incredibly creamy and filling. Definitely a good place to head to if you and your friends want to enjoy some drinks and tacos at the bar.

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Kalamazoo Chili Cook-Off

On Friday, I was chilling at my boyfriend's house, browsing the internet, and decided to search downtown Kalamazoo's website to see if there were any events going on that weekend.
And boy did I hit the jackpot. That Saturday was the ending of Kalamazoo Beer Week, the beginning of Kalamazoo Restaurant Week, and the day of the annual Kalamazoo Chili Cook-Off.

Can you say YES PLEASE??
What intrigued me most out of all three was the Chili Cook-Off. I'd never been to one before, and Kalamazoo's is massive. From 11:30-1:30, 35 locations downtown, some retail and some restaurants, would be serving up 2 oz servings of their most decadent and delicious chili and vying for first prize.
If you do the math, that's 70 oz of chili.
And according to my calculations, that was where I needed to be on Saturday.
So my boyfriend and I headed downtown and started our trek through the city.
The coordinators were nice enough to hand out these Chili Passports so that participants could find their way to all participating locations.

We started out on Kalamazoo Mall at Sticks and Stones.

The chili was mild and beefy. Good, but I was hungry for more.
So we moved across the street to Baird, whose lengthy line evidenced a tasty sample.

Their white bean and turkey chili was creamy, flavorful, and topped with cheese. What's not to love?
Next, we walked down aways and happened upon Taco Bob's. I was eager to see what kinds of spicy robust flavors a mexican restaurant would put in their chili, so we got in line.

After the first bite, I knew I'd underestimated Taco Bob's. This was easily the spiciest chili I've ever eaten. I found a few jalapeno seeds floating in my cup, so I think I know why....

While some more adventurous eaters gobbled up the chili, the trash can next to Taco Bob's was full of uneaten chili cups, so I'm assuming that most people found it too spicy to finish.

Next door, Garden Gate Cafe had a lengthy line, so we popped in to see what all the fuss was about.

I tried the veggie chili, which was naturally sweetened by corn and a lighter alternative to heavy meat chili.
At that point, I went on a hunt to find Nature Connection, the retail store that had dominated the cook-off by placing nearly every year. I wanted to see what made their recipe so special.

This place definitely had the most options, featuring a turkey chili, a beef chili, and a vegan chili (with vegan cheese as a topping).

Pre-cheese

Post-cheese

I can say this much for Nature Connection, it was certainly a flavor I'd never tasted before in chili. Sweet, but not sugary-sweet. And when I got down to the end of the tasting table, I snuck a peak at their recipe card to see what the secret ingredient was.

An entire bottle of Cherry Republic Michigan Cherry Salsa.

Yup, that'll give it an interesting flavor.

Before I left, however, I walked across the arcade to a restaurant that was serving chili with barely any line.

Ahem, did you say wild boar? As in, a new and exotic flavor?
I'm in.

Needless to say, this chili packed a punch of flavor. Tons of spices, and the boar was the texture of ground beef, but with a much gamey-er flavor.
Out of all the ones I tried, this chili was my personal favorite. 
However, it was not the winner, nor did it place overall (which I believe is a testament to the fact that people need to get over their fears and try new things every once in awhile).
Instead, the winners were as follows:

People's Choice: Nature Connection

Retail:1. Nature Connection2. Tempo Vino Winery
3. Baird

Restaurant:
1. Mangia Mangia
2. Zazios
3. The Union Cabaret & Grille

After the event, when I was looking for the winners, I was pleased to discover that the city of Kalamazoo puts together a giant PDF of (most of) the recipes featured during the cook-off.
Literally a foodie's DREAM. Particularly if you've been feeling the chill of this winter weather and been craving some hearty chili, as I have.If any of these sounded good to you, check out the booklet online here.
I have plans to make Baird's white turkey chili later this week!

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Chickpea Poppers

I adore Indian food. Unfortunately, being of European descent, I'm not very seasoned (pardon the bad pun) at using spices found west of Poland. Fortunately, I was able to use one of my favorite Indian spices when developing this recipe.
Remember several weeks ago when I posted about The Grange? And raved about how delicious their fried chickpea recipe was? And said that I would be re-creating it sometime soon?
Well, the time has come.

I call these bite-sized balls of crunchy and spicy deliciousness "Chickpea Poppers" because they pop and sizzle while they're cooking! Think of them as a spicy alternative to popcorn and feel free to make a bowl during your next movie night.

To make this recipe, you will need:

2 cans chickpeas, drained
1/2 teaspoon curry powder
1 teaspoon smoked paprika

1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
Olive oil

Start by patting your chickpeas dry and putting them in a bowl.

Sprinkle your curry powder, half of the paprika, and the salt and pepper onto your chickpeas, stirring with a spoon to equally distribute the spices.

Next, pour oil into a large flat-bottomed pan until the bottom is covered with a thin layer. Heat on medium-high until hot, then drop your chickpeas in. Make sure your oil is heated enough, otherwise it'll start to soak into the chickpeas instead of frying their outsides.

Heat the chickpeas for 15 minutes, stirring often, until they turn crispy, golden and bubbly. Like I said, you'll hear them popping as the oil fries them up into airy little spice balls.

Once the chickpeas are browned and covered with a crispy bubbly skin, sprinkle the remaining 1/2 teaspoon of smoked paprika over your chickpeas and stir. Pour them out into a dish and munch away!

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