It’s fit food Friday, so today I’m featuring one of my absolute favorite recipes: garlic and pepper quinoa! I could literally eat this everyday…and to be honest sometimes I do! As I’ve recommended before, make a large batch on Sunday and portion it out for the week. Add grilled chicken breast and you have a delicious lunch or dinner…or both! I think you’re going to end up loving this one so much, you eat it daily like me.
Just a heads up, this garlic and pepper quinoa recipe does not have the calories and nutrition values. But know that it’s made with whole, healthy ingredients that will leave your body feeling nourished, happy and not heavy! If this weren’t true, I wouldn’t eat it all the time. The recipe is written as a Sunday meal prep, using a whole bag of quinoa. I recommend following this recipe, then taking a measuring cup, and scooping out 1 cup to 1.5 cup portions into separate Tupperwares for the week. At the same time, grill up some all white meat chicken breast and add about 3-4 ounces to each portion of Quinoa (3-4 ounces is a little less than the size of a palm). You can also eat this cold over some raw spinach.
Ingredients
- 1 bag of tri color Quinoa
- 1 quart of organic low sodium chicken stock
- ½ medium red onion – chopped
- 2 cloves garlic – pressed
- 10 mini sweet peppers – chopped
- 1 small bag of raw pine nuts
- 2 tablespoons of olive oil
- Salt and pepper to taste
Directions
- Prepare quinoa as directed except replace water with the chicken stock.
- Toast pine nuts in a frying pan for 3 minutes, or until golden brown, and set aside
- Sauté onion and garlic in olive oil for about 5 minutes, or until tender.
- Add peppers and sauté an additional 3 minutes.
- Mix veggie mix to prepared quinoa, and then add pine nuts.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Hope you end up loving this recipe as much as I do! If you try it out, don’t forget to leave me a comment! Also, what would you add to this recipe??? Let me know your variations. I hope you’ll join me next week for another fit food Friday recipe…#yum!
Check out a couple other Fit Foodie recipes:
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~ Chalene
Sounds great but I think I would omit the pine nuts and add tomatoes! Also I usually cook the quinoa and veggies together but I think I will try your way and saute them then add afterwards, prob taste more flavorful and crunchy which I like! 🙂
Just made this recipe for the first time to share with my accountability group at work and online! (My friend and I have an accountability group on Facebook). I’m going to divide it up for the week and add some tuna or chicken! Already tasted it and it’s YUMMY! I am in your 7 day challenge, just ordered your PiYo videos which I have been wanting to try for a ling time, and have been on a highly motivated change in my nutrition habits since February! Down about 20 lbs and now working on muscle tone and maintaining! Been in the fitness industry for 30+ years! and always knew what I needed to do with my nutrition! but it’s REALLY connecting now! Finally! Lol! I am sure I took a step class with you about a million years ago (okay that’s an exaggeration) at an IDEA conference…is that possible? You are one of my most favorite fitness professionals and it’s because you are REAL…I love that!!! Oh, and I am from the great state of Michigan!!! Thank you for ALL you do for so many people! YOU are what I am grateful for today!!! (Of course there is much else too, but you are added to my daily gratitude checks!)
Have a grateful day Chalene! (((Hugs))) !!!!
Hi Maggie!!! So great to hear from you! I’m so happy you like the quinoa recipe…it is one of my absolute favorite things to keep in the house. It sounds like you are on the right track girl! I’m grateful for you too 🙂 getting posts like this are so amazing! Keep it up and stay in touch 🙂
I can’t wait to try this!
Thank you for sharing! I am always looking for more recipes that include quinoa:)
How big is a small bag of pine nuts?
Good questions! About half a cup.
I just made this yesterday and LOVE it!! As I buy my quinoa in bulk I had to go to the grocery store to find out that the size of a bag of quinoa is a pound lol! One change I made was to toast the quinoa in a tablespoon of coconut oil which eliminates the need to rinse the quinoa before proceeding with the recipe and adds a nice flavor. I am also vegan so the only other change I had to make was to use my veggie broth in place of the chicken broth and in place of chicken I used 1/3 cup of adzuki beans for my added protein. Thank you so much for this. I am going to share it with my Clean Eating Challenge group! I am loving PiYo too and that is my daily exercise for this challenge group.