Yes, it’s me with another quinoa dish, I just can’t stop! Once I find a mixture or base dish that I really love, e.g. quinoa and sauteed mushrooms/onions, then building from that makes it so much easier. Of course, if you don’t like mushrooms (or onions), you can always substitute for something else.

The addition of walnuts in this dish was a complete last minute thought. Typically I’m not into putting nuts into many dishes except salads and desserts, but I thought this was a nice addition. Of course, if you have a nut allergy, please skip the nut addition.

So without further ado….let us begin!

You will need:

• 1 cup uncooked quinoa
• 1 pkg (8 oz) mushrooms, any variety you prefer
• 1 bunch kale, sliced (this makes 3 to 4 cups worth)
• 2 cups chopped sweet potato
• 1/2 large onion, diced
• 1/2 cup roasted red pepper, sliced (cooking hack: you can buy great roasted red peppers at the store in glass jars, or at some stores you can find it in bulk at the self-serve olive bar
• 1/2 cup walnuts
• 2 tbsp coconut oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• salt and pepper to taste

Step 1:

The first step is to cook the quinoa and sweet potato.

For the quinoa, In a medium-sized pot, add 2 cups water to 1 cup quinoa. Bring the water and quinoa to a boil, then lower the heat to medium to cook the rest of the way. The quinoa is ready when it is light and fluffy, with little white “tails” at the end. Cook time takes about 20 minutes.

For the sweet potato, chop into bite-size pieces, and fill a small pot with water. Add the the sweet potato, and bring the water to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium and continue boiling the potatoes until they are tender. Cook time is about 15 minutes.

Step 2:

As the quinoa is cooking, you can start sauteing your veggies. Turn your stove to high heat, and add a bit of coconut oil to your pan. Saute the onions and garlic until golden brown. Remove from the pan and put into a large mixing bowl. (you will use this bowl for mixing everything together).

Add some more coconut oil to the pan, and saute the mushrooms on high heat. You want to sear the outsides so they are slightly crispy, but haven’t lost all their water yet. Once this is done, add to the bowl with the onions and garlic.

Lastly is the kale. If you still have some oil left, add this to the pan. If not, you can cook the kale with a bit of water. Saute the kale lightly on medium heat, making sure it retains some crunch and green color to it. Once this is done, add to the mixing bowl as well.

Step 3:

By this time the quinoa and sweet potatoes should be done as well. Add them to the large bowl along with the roasted red pepper and walnuts. Mix everything together thoroughly. You can also add some salt and pepper to taste.

Once everything is mixed, it’s time to serve and eat! This dish should be eaten hot, and it tastes great freshly prepared and mixed.

You can eat with a side of avocado, some tortillas, or anything else that you like!

I personally like to add some nutritional yeast to the dish, as this gives it an extra cheesy flavor, plus adds some essential B vitamins to the mix! (If you don’t know what nutritional yeast is, click here to read my blog post about it).

Enjoy!