Butternut Squash Quinoa

My dream last night confirmed two things: a) I’m slightly wackadoo, and b) I think I’m able to communicate with deceased family members and/or loved ones. Now, I realize I sound like I’ve fallen off the rocker with statement ‘B’, but last night’s dream was nothing short of crazy. Seriously, I need to start keeping a dream diary – and then, I can sell it and make booku amounts of money Narcissism at it’s finest, I know.

Speaking of crazy, here’s a word a to the wise: Do not compensate a sleepless night with 5 coats of mascara and a large drip coffee from Starbucks. This is not (read: not) a good idea. Especially given that I only drink coffee about once or twice a month, so I’m super sensitive to the caffeine – Insert; shaking here. Sadly, the same can’t be said for the mascara, but acclimation aside, it’s making my sore eyes sorer. If this were twitter, I believe this tidbit would end in #whenwillilearn….

Ok, time to talk food… Ohhh, sweet food.

So, you know I love raw food, right? Right. Ok, well as of late, I’ve been placing more emphasis on the food itself, rather than the temperature used to prepare it. I.e., paying close attention to avoiding foods which I may be intolerant to. After having a bio-meridian test run the other week, it was confirmed that I’m intolerant to the following foods: brown rice, flax, corn, wheat, eggs, dairy. Now, the later of those items didn’t surprise me, but the first few, explained the horrible digestive issues I was having. Umm, Sun Warrior protein powder anyone!? Every morning I’d throw a scoop in my green smoothie and no more than two hours later, I’d be stooped over in pain. I guess I just kind of blamed the pain on something else, since the protein is free from most common allergies. So yeah, I hate you Sun Warrior protein powder (and, that goes for you too Nutrobiotic). Any who, allergies and hate aside, I’ve been extremely cautious to avoid the above foods and, I’m feeling great! Yay me

Another reason I’ve increased the amount of cooked food this past week, is because my life has been something like #$%^&*!!! I’m not complaining at all, I rather like being busy, but it does come at a cost – that being, less time I have to spend in the kitchen. So, as a solution to the above, I’ve hopped on the one-pot-meal bandwagon. There are a lot of cookbooks for one-pot meals; use this Barnes and Noble coupon to save some money.

On Friday, I whipped up a batch of Lauren’s Lemon Lentil Soup and was so obsessed with it (insert exciting four-letter words here), that I decided to make another one-pot-meal – A play off of a Butternut Squash Risotto. Essentially, this is not a recipe, but rather a guideline – after all, pens and documentation are sometimes overrated…

Butternut Squash Quinoa Risotto

2 T coconut butter/oil
2 butternut squash bulbs, cubed (I saved the necks for spiralized noodles)
Coarse ground sea salt and pepper
2 C quinoa
4 C vegetable broth
1 clove of garlic, minced
cumin, Italian seasoning, sage, paprika

Melt 1 T coconut butter over medium heat. Add squash; season with salt and pepper. Cook, until edges soften, about 10 minutes.
Add quinoa; stir to coat. Add veggie broth, seasonings and 1 T of coconut oil. Stir for about 2 minutes.
Reduce heat to medium low; add hot broth (boil broth before hand). Stir for another 2 minutes.
Reduce heat to low, cover and let simmer for about 30 minutes.
Garnish with Raw Parmesan.

Making both of these meals this weekend, saved me a tremendous amount of time this week! What I did, was Sunday night I portioned out the soup and quinoa (I ended up mixing to two together), placed in 6 separate containers, and stuck in the freezer. Then , each night before heading to bed, I’d pull out a container and let it thaw overnight. This way, I was able to take my lunch to work without having to hassle with morning prep work. What’s even better, is the soup/quinoa that I didn’t portion out, made a great addition to Polo’s dog food – And, he loves it! I also made Polo a batch of steamed vegetables last night with fresh organic coconut oil. Yes, he’s spoiled.

Have a great weekend!

Tagged as: easy, fall, one-pot, quick, sqaush, vegan, winter