We had a great visit with family over Thanksgiving, but not nearly so nice a homecoming. Instead of the hour or two of relaxing we were picturing after a long day of travel home, we had half an inch of water covering the entire house, caused by a leak in the hose that feeds the refrigerator’s icemaker. This also put a kink in my plans to eat healthier after a week of pie, cookies, and cheesecake.
Fortunately, I hoard freezer meals. If I make a recipe that freezes well and makes enough for multiple meals, I freeze some, but then I have trouble convincing myself to ever eat them. What if I need those one day?
Well, I need them now. We ate hastily defrosted chili in between stunned shop-vaccing the first night, squash-black bean burritos the next night while we watched contractors cut into the walls and set out fans, and four cheese lasagna over the weekend when we were staying in a hotel but had an out-of-town friend’s housekey.
I’m quickly depleting my freezer stash, so while things are somewhat stabilized and we’re living at home in our torn up house before reconstruction begins, I’m still keeping things very simple. This has become a staple. It’s not quite as easy as dumping a ziploc bag of stew into a pot and heating it up, but it’s straightforward enough to make in a kitchen full of boxes in between doing load after load of laundry. Best of all, it tastes like comfort food to us – maybe not tomato soup and grilled cheese level of comfort, but close enough for something so healthy. But now it’s time to start thinking about building my freezer stash back up to help get us through reconstruction.
Printer Friendly Recipe
Quinoa with Roasted Brussels Sprouts, Pine Nuts, and Parmesan (adapted from a recipe I adapted from Gourmet)
Serves 4
1½ cups water
salt
1 cup quinoa, rinsed and drained
2 pounds brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved lengthwise
black pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
½ cup (6 ounces) pine nuts
2 cloves garlic, minced
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1 cup (2 ounces) parmesan, shredded
1. Place a rimmed baking sheet in the middle of the oven and heat the oven to 450 degrees. In a large saucepan over high heat, bring the water and ½ teaspoon salt to a boil. Add the quinoa, reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook for 15 minutes. Without removing the lid, remove the pot from the heat and set aside for another 15 minutes.
2. While the quinoa cooks, remove the heated baking sheet from the oven and spread 1 tablespoon of oil over its surface. Place the brussels sprouts on the sheet, generously season with salt and pepper, and stir to coat with the oil. Arrange the sprouts cut-side down. Transfer to the oven and cook for 12 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil, the pine nuts, garlic, and red pepper flakes. After the brussels sprouts have roasted for 12 minutes, add the pine nut mixture to the baking sheet and roast for an additional 2-3 minutes, until the brussels sprouts are browned and tender and the nuts are just toasted. (Keep an eye on the nuts; they burn easily.)
4. Stir the lemon juice into the quinoa, then add the roasted sprouts and pine nuts and the parmesan. Stir to combine; serve immediately.
