Red Quinoa With Roasted Butternut Squash Cranberries And Pecans Recipe 435

Steps:

• Position an oven rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 400°F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil and set aside.
• Place the squash in a medium bowl and add 3 tablespoons of the oil, the thyme and 2 teaspoons of salt and season with pepper to taste. Mix until the squash is well coated. Transfer to the prepared baking sheet and spread squash out into a single layer. Roast until a paring knife slides into the squash with no resistance, about 30 minutes, stirring about halfway through the cooking time. Put the pistachios on a small baking sheet and toast until fragrant, about 5 minutes.
• Meanwhile, rinse the quinoa in cold water in a fine-mesh strainer. Bring the broth or water to a boil and stir in the quinoa. Simmer, uncovered, until a small white spiral becomes visible in each grain, about 9 minutes. Drain the quinoa and transfer it to a medium bowl. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil, the pistachios, cranberries, vinegar, 1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper to taste.
• Place the spinach in a large mixing bowl and toss with the hot squash until slightly wilted. Add the quinoa mixture and toss again. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Steps:

• 1. 1 cup red quinoa (I used Ancient Harvest Red Quinoa) 2. Cook the red quinoa in a rice cooker, using a 1:2 ratio of 1 cup red quinoa to 2 cups water. As mentioned above, if you like it softer, add additional 1/4 cup water. 3. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. 4. In a medium roasting pan add: 1 smallish butternut squash, peeled and diced 1/2 cup fresh or frozen cranberries, halved or chopped as you prefer 1/2 of a medium red onion, diced fine 1 clove of garlic, minced 5. Drizzle the butternut squash, cranberries, onion and garlic with a little olive oil, to coat. Add a teaspoon or two of pure maple syrup- not too much. Sprinkle with sea salt. Toss everything together. Roast in the top half of the oven until the squash is tender- about 15 to 20 minutes. Remove the pan and set aside. 6. In a large dry skillet, add: 1/2 cup chopped pecans 7. Heat the skillet and lightly toast the pecans briefly, till fragrant. 8. Add in the cooked quinoa and the butternut mixture. 9. Add: 2 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley A sprinkle of cumin, ginger or curry, to taste Sea salt and ground pepper, to taste 10. Drizzle the quinoa mixture with some fruity extra virgin olive oil and toss to coat. Taste test and adjust seasonings. Heat through gently. Serve. Makes 4 servings.