Night Grillin'

Ah, night grilling! We decided it was time to grill, but got distracted and before we knew it, darkness had taken over. But that did not deter plans for eating grilled food!!!

I sliced a bunch of zucchini, thanks to a giant zucchini gifted to me by a co-worker. I used my mandoline to slice both crinkle-cut style and regular slices. I marinated in olive oil and my fave, Montreal Steak Seasoning:



Next, I used the mandoline again for thick-cut potatoes and onions to put into a foil packet along with olive oil, salt and whole peeled garlic cloves. Here's a picture of the packet:




Everything on the grill:



Just the 'burgs (we used Boca Big Burgers):


My bun awaiting the 'burg (yes, that is a zucchini slice under the onion):

Chik'n Strips with Edamame Vegetable Blend and Quinoa

A simple meal, with Morningstar Chik'n Strips, a steamer bag of frozen veggies (Mukimame Vegetable Blend from Target) and quinoa.

Peanut Curry Sauce from Ruam Mit Thai

Not the best picture, from inside a box of takeout, but this is one of the BEST dishes around. Pha Ram Long Song from Ruam Mit Thai in Saint Paul. DROOL: Red curry, coconut milk, crushed peanits, served over steamed spinach and (the way we order) with fried tofu. Can also be done with mock duck, but they fry the tofu to order, so it's always delicious. Plus, they separate everything out for takeout so nothing gets soggy. yum yum yum yum

Accidentally Vegan: Keebler Jumbo Fudge Sticks

I found these in my day to day perusing of junk food as being accidentally vegan. These are the peanut butter flavor, as opposed to the original vanilla flavor. I much prefer the PB flavor. To be clear, the mini fudge sticks are not vegan, but the jumbo ones are. Weird, I know.

Not healthy in the least, but a nice sugar bomb.

Smoky Beans with Quinoa and Corn

A spin on one of my favorites, Smoky Beans and Rice, this time with quinoa and kidney beans rather than black beans and rice. Any bean will do, as would any grain. I added corn to this one for something extra.

I made a TON of quinoa and have been using it for everything: beans and quinoa, broccoli and quinoa, quinoa as hot cereal in the morning with soymilk and dried or fresh fruit.

I sauteed onion and garlic first and in another pan heated veggie broth. Then I added two cans of kidney beans, drained and rinsed, to the onions and garlic. I added in frozen corn and just when it was getting un-frozen, I added a ton of quinoa to the ratio I preferred, and mixed everything. A few drops of liquid smoke, another big stir, and then added some veggie broth and allowed it to simmer until the broth was absorbed by the beans and quinoa. The liquid will absorb more after cooking, so keep that in mind.