Spicy quinoa with black beans and spinach topped with salmon and mango salsa

It is no secret that I love cooking. I love experimenting with flavors and coming up with unique combinations. I love Ethiopian, Mexican, and Indian foods. These foods use lots of flavors and spices. They give me inspiration for when I make my own creations. The following recipe I made for Lavender and I the other night. It’s full of flavor and healthy. If you are worried about it being too spicy take out some of the red crushed pepper. If you are looking for a vegan dish, leave off the salmon. This is the first time I created this but I will make it again.

Spicy quinoa with black beans and spinach topped with salmon and mango salsa (serves 4)

Make the mango salsa first.
2 fresh mangos peeled and chopped up
Handful of cilantro
4 garlic cloves minced
1 jalapeño pepper
3 Tbsp. of lime juice
Black pepper to taste
Combine all ingredients and store in the refrigerator until time to use.

Next start the quinoa

1 pablano pepper chopped
4-6 garlic cloves minced
1 cup of quinoa
2 cups of water
½ tbsp. of olive oil
1 tbsp. crushed red pepper
Onion powder and black pepper to taste
Sauté pepper and garlic in the olive oil. Add water and let boil and quinoa and the rest of the ingredients. Lower heat, cover, and let sit for about 15 minutes.

Salmon

1 pound of salmon cut into four 4 oz. pieces
2 tbsps. Of freshly grated ginger
6-8 curry leaves
Black pepper
Rub ginger and pepper on salmon. Place salmon in foil packets with 1 ½ -2 curry leaves. Bake at 425 for 14 minutes.

And finally….

Black beans and spinach
1 can of black beans
1 vegetables buillion cube
1 tbsp. of crush red pepper
½ tbsp. of onion powder
3 cups of spinach
Heat up the first 4 ingredients then add the spinach cook just until the spinach is wilted.

Now put it all together!
Put 1/4 the quinoa on plate, 1/4 the black beans and spinach, 1 piece of the salmon on top and finish with the mango salsa.

Enjoy. Your mouth will be happy.

Quinoa!

I love quinoa. Below is my basic recipe for it. I use this as a side dish or stir in some easy add-ins for the main dish. Tonight I added cooked adzuki beans and served it with zucchini, avocado, and baked corn tortillas topped with fresh salsa. Another thing that I love doing with it is adding sautéed mushrooms, red pepper, and a bag of fresh spinach. I hope you will give it a try. Quinoa is a bit expensive when it comes to grains but stores like Whole Foods sells it in bulk. Quinoa is rich in nutrients and it is a complete protein, meaning that it includes all nine essential amino acids.

Ingredients
1- Cup of quinoa
1- Can of tomatoes (I buy the salt free ones) or 3-4 chopped tomatoes
1- Jalapeño pepper, diced
1- Poblano pepper, diced
1- Lime
4- Garlic cloves, diced
Fresh cilantro

Directions
In a medium non-stick pan (so you don’t have to use oil) slightly cook the peppers and garlic over medium heat for about five minutes. Add the quinoa and 2 cups of water bring to a boil, cover, lower the heat and let that cook for about 15 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes and cook all the juice out, about five more minutes, stir in cilantro and juice from one lime. Enjoy!