Of Quinoa Pilafs and Tacos

After being away for a month at Lackland Air Force base in Texas, Zach is finally back home!!! I can scarcely put into words how happy I am now that we can once more share with each other our home, our days, and our time in the kitchen together!

We've been sharing cooking duties this week, which has been a treat as well - both to be able to cook for Zach, for which I've been waiting all month, compiling ideas for dishes I know he'll love, and to have the wonderful treat of arriving home from a long day at work on Thursday night to find Zach cooking dinner for us... Darlin', Thank You!!!

Having both of us in the kitchen together once again also provides the delights of two sets of culinary themes and interpretations!

For example...

On Wednesday night, I fixed a remarkably healthy (and incredibly delicious) quinoa and brown rice pilaf.

The following night, Zach fixed lusciously decadent (and incredibly delicious) carne asada tacos.

I think we make a pretty good team... ;-)

Quinoa and Brown Rice Pilaf

4 cups vegetable broth
1/2 cup quinoa (I used red quinoa for a nice color contrast)
1 1/2 cups brown rice
2 T dehydrated onion
2 T light, nonhydrogenated vegan margarine or butter
1 cup shelled peas, fresh or frozen
1/3 cup candied pecans, coarsely chopped
1 tsp smoked paprika
1/4 to 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes (depending on how much heat you like)

~ Bring the broth to a boil, stir in the quinoa, brown rice, and onion, reduce the heat, cover, and simmer until all of the broth has absorbed. Fluff the quinoa and rice with a fork, cover again, and set aside.
~ In a large skillet over medium heat, melt the vegan marg or butter, add the peas, and cook just for a minute or two, until the peas are still very crisp-tender.
~ Stir in the quinoa-rice mixture, candied pecans, smoked paprika, and red pepper flakes. Stir constantly until the quinoa and rice are heated through and a little bit toasted. Season to taste with salt and pepper, and serve warm!

Carne Asada Tacos

5 lbs pork shoulder, cut into 1" cubes OR 5 lb tempeh, cut into 1 1/2" cubes
Cajun seasoning
Garlic powder
Cumin
3 T canola oil, plus more if using the tempeh
Chicken broth OR vegetable broth
Coca Cola
Whole wheat tortillas, salsa verde, pico de gallo, and shredded cheddar cheese, for serving

~ Season the pork or tempeh cubes to taste with Cajun seasoning, garlic powder, and plentiful cumin.
~ Heat the canola oil in a large Dutch oven or cast iron skillet over medium-high heat, and brown the pork or tempeh cubes in small batches until all of the cubes are very well browned. If you're using the tempeh, you'll need to add more canola oil between each couple of batches or so.
~ Once all the cubes are browned, return them to the Dutch oven or skillet, and add 3 parts broth to 1 part Coca Cola until the cubes are just covered with liquid.
~ Simmer vigorously until most of the liquid is gone. If you're using the tempeh, the cubes will begin to fall apart some, but that's quite alright, everything will still be delicious! Preheat the oven to 425 while simmering off the liquid.
~ Transfer everything to a 9X11 baking dish, and bake for 10 minutes - just to get everything a bit crispy on top.
~ Serve warm, on whole wheat tortillas and topped with salsa verde, pico de gallo, and Cheddar cheese!