Greek Kale and Quinoa Salad

This salad combines some of my favorite flavors! First, there's Greek salad, made with one of my all time favorite greens, dinosaur kale! Then, there's a hearty quinoa base that makes this great material for a bowl. In my opinion, this combo just can't go wrong. 

Ingredients: 

1/4 cup quinoa

1 cup kale, ribs removed and chopped 

1/2 English cucumber, peeled and sliced

1/4 cup feta cheese, dairy or non-dairy

10 pitted kalamata olives

10 grape tomatoes

Ginger lemon salad dressing

2 Tbs Honey Citron Ginger Tea

1 Tbs Dijon mustard

2 Tbs lemon juice

1/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Directions: 

Bring 1 cup of water to boil in a medium saucepan. Add the quinoa. Reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook for about 15 minutes, until the quinoa grains begin to burst. Drain any remaining water and let cool. 

Massage the kale for about 1 minute, until it begins to turn glossy. Mix the quinoa, kale and remaining ingredients along with 1 Tbs of the ginger lemon salad dressing. Save the remaining dressing for another salad. Serve and enjoy.

Serves 2

Stealthy Cooking Tip: I like using this ginger lemon tea from Costco for many more things than tea. It makes a great base for salad dressings, just like this one. 

Dairy Free Mushroom Alfredo Sauce

I'd been looking and looking for a good substitute for the dairy ridden alfredo sauces that don't work well for me. Finally, I found one that works! Of course, I had to change things up just a bit, but the basics remain the same. My heartfelt thanks to thevegan8.com for the inspiration!

Ingredients:

1 cup sweet onion, diced

1 clove garlic, minced

3/4 cup low sodium chicken broth

1/2 tsp salt

1/3 cup raw unsalted cashews

up to 1 additional cup low sodium chicken broth

1 tsp lemon juice

1 Tbs nutritional yeast

1 tsp butter

1 tsp olive oil

1 clove garlic, minced

8 oz cremini mushrooms, sliced

(remainder of the low sodium chicken broth)

fettucine of your choice

Directions: 

Add the onion, garlic, and 3/4 cup chicken broth to a nonstick pan set over medium heat. Cook until the onion is translucent, and the chicken broth has evaporated, about 10 minutes. Transfer the onion mixture to a blender and wipe out the skillet. Add the salt, cashews, about 1/2 cup more of the chicken broth, plus the lemon juice and nutritional yeast to the blender. Blend until smooth, adding additional chicken broth if the mixture is too thick. Heat the butter and olive oil in the skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and mushrooms. Cook until the mushrooms turn a dark brown, adding any remaining chicken broth. Cook the fettucine according to package directions. To serve, mix the fettucine with the alfredo sauce, then spoon some of the mushrooms on top. Garnish with fresh parsley or basil. 

Serves 3-4

Stealthy Cooking Tip: Use vegetable stock to make this a vegan recipe. Add some bacon or prosciutto to the mushrooms to make a meat lover happy. Use gluten free noodles to make this gluten free. Whichever option you prefer, enjoy!