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Chicken Pesto Night

Today I was able to make breakfast at home due to the 2 hour delay in getting in to work. The roads this morning were a little slick. So, I made a bowl of oatmeal!

The mix:
Bob’s Red Mill Oats
Chia seeds cooked in
Cinnamon
Brown Sugar
Roasted almonds and walnuts
I enjoyed a cup of coffee while eating my yummy bowl of oats.
Last night I pulled out an old quinoa recipe to fix for lunch today. I’ve made this recipe before but I didn’t like it as much as the quinoa salad I made last week.
Quinoa with Apricots and Pecans
3 T Chopped Pecans
2/3 C Quinoa
2/3 C Orange Juice
2/3 C water
1/3 C Chopped dried Apricots
¼ C golden rasins
2  Green onions
1 T Cilantro
1 T Lemon Juice
1 teaspoon olive oil
½ teaspoon salt
In a small non stick skillet, toast pecans over medium heat, stirring often, 3 to 4 min. Place on place and cool. Place quinoa in a fine mesh strainer under cold water. In medium sauce pan stir together quinoa, OJ, and water. Heat to boiling. Reduce heat, cover and simmer 12 to 15 min. Transfer the quinoa to a large bowl add apricots, raisins, green onions, cilantro and toasted pecans. Stir in lemon juice, oil and salt.

Quinoa enjoyed with a fresh salad

I think next time I will leave out the onions, I’m not a big fan of them unless they are cooked.  I used fresh squeezed OJ not because I was trying to be healthy but because Kyle drank it all! J He loves OJ! It didn’t make quite the 2/3 cups it called for.

At work I had a snack thanks to Lacey. She gave me some cocoa coated almonds! They are so good!
I also had a jucy orange when I got home from work today.

Dinner today was my favorite! I think Mexican food is my number one choice but pasta comes very close. I made chicken pesto with whole wheat noodles. I don’t know if you like whole wheat noodles but I LOVE them.

I made homemade pesto. It tasted pretty good but just not as good as it tastes in the summer, right out of the garden. I’ve had lots of luck growing Basil and try to grow it every year. A friend of mine told me that pesto freezes well so I may try that this summer.
Here is the mix for the pesto

Fresh Basil Pesto
2 Cups fresh basil leaves, packed
½ Cups freshly grated parmesan
½ Cup extra virgin olive oil
1/3 Cup Pine Nuts
3 Medium garlic cloves
Salt and pepper
Combine the basil in with the pine nuts, pulse a few times in the food processer. Add the garlic, pulse a few times more.
Slowly add olive oil in a constant stream while the food processer is on. Stop to scrape down the sides. Add grated cheese and pulse again until blended. Add a pinch of salt and pepper to taste.

 I cut the recipe in half for me. It made about 1 ½ servings. Guess what’s for lunch tomorrow?? Have you noticed my new plates I got? I ordered these a couple weeks ago. They came in 6 different colors and are luncheon sized plates. I love them so far. They are smaller than regular dinner plates and are dishwasher, oven, and microwave safe. If you are interested in checking them out you can see them here .
With dinner I enjoyed a glass of mixed POM juice with sparkling water. YUM!

Comments

  1. LaceyJanuary 12, 2011 at 5:54 AM

    I had my pesto too and it was very good! Ready for summer as well so we can grow our fresh herbs. So much cheaper then buying them!

    ReplyDelete
  2. FelishaJanuary 12, 2011 at 7:51 PM

    Those almonds are delish.

    ReplyDelete

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