Mexican Quinoa Salad

Light & delicious! Use as a side or main dish. 

INGREDIENTS 

1 cup uncooked quinoa, well rinsed

1/2 tsp sea salt

2 cups water

1/3 cup diced red onion

2 tbsp lime juice (I used the juice from one whole fresh lime)

1-15 oz can of black beans, drained & rinsed

1 cup frozen corn (I used 1 can corn with no additives, rinsed)

3 medium tomatoes, seeded and cut into chunks

Shredded cheese (I used a mozerella/Parmesan mixed pack)

1 jalapeño seeded and sliced

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

3 tbsp olive oil

PROCESS

1. Put the rinsed quinoa, salt, and water in a pot and bring to a boil. It is best to use a non-stick pot. After it boils, reduce heat, cover and let simmer for 10-15 minutes or until the water is absorbed. 

2. Remove quinoa from heat, place in a large bowl and fluff with fork to facilitate cooling. It is best to use a bowl with a lid for easier storage. 

3. While the quinoa is cooking, prep the remaining salad. First, place the chopped onions in the bowl with the lime juice and allow to soak. This will cut the sharpness of the onion. 

4. Warm up the rinsed black beans and corn. I put both of these in the same pot and just heated them slightly. 

5. Add the tomatoes, jalapeño, black beans/corn mix, cilantro, and onion mix to the bowl of quinoa. 

You can either cover and chill slightly or serve at room temperature. We also added in shredded cheese ,croutons, and a delicious avacado ranch dressing (found at Kroger) to ours. We added grilled chicken as well, but you can leave this off if you are vegetarian/vegan. 

INFO

Prep time: 15 min

Cook time: 25 min

Feeds: 4-6 servings 

Found original recipe on Simply Recipes. My notations are in italics. 

Crock Pot Chicken Fajitas

It's been so long since I've written a blog post or typed up a recipe! My daughter and I tried this new recipe and we love it, so I thought I would share. It is a crock pot chicken fajita recipe. The reason we love it is because we can put this on at lunch and it will be ready by dinner. Plus is makes for tasty leftovers.


INGREDIENTS
1-2 lbs of chicken - I use boneless, skinless tenderloins because they are easier to work with.
1 medium/large yellow onion
1 red pepper
1 orange pepper
1 yellow pepper - I will sometimes get the bag of  mini sweet peppers and use those.
1 package of fajita seasoning (or you can use your own seasoning mixture)
3/4 cup of salsa of choice
Fajita shells of choice
Garnishments of choice - rice, black beans, refried beans, sour cream, etc.


UTENSILS NEEDED
Medium sized crock pot
Knives
Cutting boards
Spoon (to stir)


HOW TO MAKE IT
I rinse and place my chicken into a medium sized crock pot. Be sure to follow safe handling guidelines of raw chicken by washing your hands and using new utensils on your veggies. Chop up the entire onion and place in crock pot. I like my onion chunks bigger but chop to your liking! Chop up all the peppers and place in crock pot.


Add in the fajita seasoning pack (or your mixture of seasoning - you can choose to add hotter peppers or spices if you want more heat). Measure out 3/4 cup of salsa and add to crock pot. Give everything a stir.


I set my crock pot on High setting for about 30 min and then turn down to Low and let cook for 4-5 hours. I will stir occasionally just to make sure my chicken is getting cooked.


PUT IT TOGETHER
We like black beans, refried beans, rice, cheese, and sour cream in our house. I use the smaller fajita flour shells (yes I know they are not great for you but they taste good, and 1-2 won't kill you). We layer in our extras and then add the chicken mixture to our shells for the tastiest chicken fajitas at home EVER!! I will also just put the chicken mixture over rice in a bowl and eat without shells.


Alternative Idea! You could add a few more ingredients and have a spicy Mexican soup!

The end result getting ready for leftovers!