Category: Grains

{Ridiculously Delicious} Saffron Game Hen; Wild Rice Dressing with Cherries and Pistachios

February 24, 2011 Filled under Chicken and Poultry, Fruit, Grains, Greek/Mediterranean, Sides, Special Occasions, Winter
12 Comments

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Are you ready for something ridiculously delicious? That’s right, I made it to the second round of the Marx Foods Ridiculously Delicious Challenge! In this round, each contestant was asked to create a recipe using two of eight ingredient samples that we received. With ingredients ranging from coconut sugar to grains of paradise, it wasn’t an easy task!

I originally hoped to make a duck dish utilizing the dried tart cherries and tepin chilis, but had to change gears when I wasn’t able to find duck breasts. Despite having to rethink my entry in the middle of the grocery store (something I admittedly am not good at – I can’t shop without a list!), I couldn’t be happier with the meal that I came up with: a Moroccan-themed feast of Cornish game hens seasoned with saffron and lemon along with wild rice dressing with tart cherries and pistachios.

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Slathered with a combination of butter, saffron, and lemon, these brightly flavored hens boast a beautifully golden skin that crackles under your fork and gives way to succulent, juicy meat. The wild rice dressing is the perfect side dish — the rice itself is fabulously nutty and moist, while the pistachios and tart cherries contribute unexpected texture, flavor, and color. Make sure to buy dried tart cherries for this recipe — check the package closely! It’s very easy to accidentally buy dried cranberries that are only flavored like cherries, but those are much sweeter and I don’t think they would work nearly as well.

Served with a glass of wine and a side of cajun-blackened green beans, this meal was a real weeknight treat — and every bit worth the slightly longer than normal cooking time. After all, while it takes a little over an hour to prepare, it only requires you to be in the kitchen for about 15 minutes.

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{Tazo Cookoff} Vanilla Rooibos Quinoa Pudding with Cherry & Pistachio

August 15, 2010 Filled under Breakfast, Desserts, Fruit, Grains, Tazo Cookoff
47 Comments

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Fate smiled down on me last week when I opened the box containing the mystery ingredient for week two of the Tazo Cookoff. I had been dreaming of a tea enriched breakfast appropriate rice pudding for months. When I was first asked to participate in this challenge I knew I finally had an excuse to actually make it. But I wanted to step things up for this challenge so I decided that instead of using rice I would use quinoa. I crossed my fingers and hoped that one of the mystery ingredients would work in this dish.
Imagine my delight when I opened he week two box only to find a jar of organic red quinoa waiting to take pat in some culinary magic. My quinoa pudding was meant to be.

I used boxed vanilla rooibos latte concentrate for this recipe because cooking with a product clearly meant for drinking (even more than tea in general) seemed fun. Plus it meant that I didn’t need to add any additional sugar or spices (the concentrate is slightly sweetened and contains vanilla and cinnamon). Complete with toppings, this recipe contains a grand total of six ingredients. You can’t get much simpler than that!


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The quinoa gives this pudding a nutty flavor and a coarse texture — it lacks the creamy starchiness or rice pudding and reminds me more of steel cut oats. The flavor of the tea is very prominent and combined with the sweetness of the cherries and the crunch of the pistachios, it makes a great breakfast or a filling snack.

Also, vanilla rooibos lattes? Totally my new favorite drink. Warm and creamy, with a slightly floral this drink reminds me of the perfect rainy day. The kind where you have nothing better to do than sit in your yoga pants, drink tea, and curl up with a book while the rain softly pitter patters outside the window.

A few tips for making this pudding:
   
  1. Make sure to rinse the quinoa well. Until the water runs clear. This will prevent it from being bitter.
  2. Ignore the directions on the back of the box of concentrate. If you look at the box, you’ll be tempted to use more concentrate than this recipe calls for. That would be a huge mistake. Even though you start with a cup and a half of milk, it reduces down to form the pudding and you’ll only end up with about a quarter cup of milk in the final dish. If you use too much concentrate the ratios will be way off and your pudding will be far too sweet.

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Click to continue reading Vanilla Rooibos Quinoa Pudding with Cherry & Pistachio and for a change to win a great Tazo gift pack –>

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Vanilla Rooibos Quinoa Pudding with Cherry & Pistachio

For a more dessert-like pudding, use rice instead of quinoa. Cherries are delicious, but any combination of a seasonal fruit and complimenting nut will work.

  • 1/2 cup red quinoa, rinsed well
  • 1 cup skim milk
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream*
  • 1/4 cup vanilla rooibos tea late concentrate
  • 1 cup cherries, pitted and chopped
  • 2 Tbs chopped pistachios

Combine the quinoa, milk, cream and tea concentrate in a medium saucepan over low to medium heat. Cook, stirring frequently, for a half hour. For the first 20 minutes, the mixture will seem very liquidly, but after that it will begin to reduce very quickly. Keep a close eye on it at this point. When the mixture has reduced down to a pudding-like consistency, remove it from heat. Chill for at least a half hour.

Add the cherries to a small sauce pan with a tablespoon of water. Cook over medium heat until soft and slightly syrupy. Top the quinoa pudding with the warm cherries and a sprinkle of chopped pistachios.

Serves 4

* I added the cream because the pudding won’t reach the right consistency without a little fat and I only had skim milk. Feel free to substitute 1-1/2 cups whole or reduced fat milk for the skim milk and cream.

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Looking for a second chance to win a great Tazo gift pack including a one year supply of tea and a selection of tea-brewing essentials? You’ll be entered one time for every comment you leave on one of my Tazo recipes. This is recipe # 2 of 3. The first recipe was my tea-smoked salmon with lavender and honey glaze. (Every comment you leave will also help me win a $1,000 gift card to Williams Sonoma.)

I was provided with a selection of Tazo teas and quinoa to use as inspiration in this challenge. I have no affiliation with Tazo or Starbucks, and any opinions stated above are my own.