Quinoa and Kale Crustless Quiche

The title sounds like a tongue twister, but the recipe is a tongue pleaser!  A singer friend of mine, Nina Shortridge, sent a link to me, of a site that had this recipe.  The site features food the way I like to eat it: all natural, whole and TASTY!  I think you can have anything you want to eat in life, if you eat seasonally, and with moderation. 

Here's the link to the site: Click here to go to Food52.

Kale greens are some of the most vitamin packed greens on the planet. Check it out: Click here to see why kale is so good for you. 

Quinoa is an ancient grain that is gaining popularity because of it's wonderful taste and nutritional value. Click here to see why Quinoa is so good for you. It has a yummy "nutty" flavor with a chewy texture.

The only ingredient addition I made was sliced mushrooms.  I also added a bit of shredded cheddar on the top during the last 5 minutes of baking. If you look at the recipe online you'll see that I also made some changes in how to prepare it. For the sake of simplicity (and because it's my blog) I'm going to post how I made it (not how they made it).

Lee LOVED this recipe - he is a huge fan of Kale (as you probably know by my other posts) and he mmmm'd and wow'd his way through the meal.  :-)

Quinoa and Kale Crustless Quiche

Ingredients~

1/2 C quinoa
1 C water
2 TBL olive oil
1 bunch kale, stems removed and cut into ribbons
1 vidalia onion, thinly sliced (a mandoline is perfect for thin slicing)
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 C white cheddar cheese, grated
3 oz. cream cheese, cubed
4 eggs
salt and pepper to taste

Directions~

1. Caramelize the onions: Heat the olive oil in a large pan on medium heat. when the oil is shimmering, add the onions. Cook on medium-low until the onions are very soft and brown. This may take up to 30 minutes. The key is to cook low and slow.

 2.. Preheat oven to 350. Butter a 9" pie dish. Rinse the quinoa (I do this in a fine mesh sieve - I find it is the easiest method).




Rinsing the quinoa...



Combine the quinoa and water in a pan. Bring to a boil on medium high heat and then reduce to a simmer for 20 minutes, or until the water is absorbed into the quinoa. Set aside.




Cooked Quinoa

 

3. Remove the onions from the pan, and place them in a large mixing bowl. Add sliced mushrooms to the pan with a dab of butter. Saute on medium-high heat to get a nice brown sear on the mushrooms. When cooked, remove mushrooms to the bowl with the onions.




Slice the kale into strips by laying the leaves on top of one another and slice away!



4. Add the kale into the hot pan with a swirl of olive oil and a TBl or two of water. Cook onmedium heat until completely wilted and bright green, about 5 minutes. Allow to cool a bit.




Cooked and bright green.


5. Add kale, cooked quinoa, garlic, cream cheese, and cheddar to the mixing bowl. Stir until evenly mixed.

6. In a small bowl, whisk the eggs then pour over quinoa/kale mixture. Stir until egg is completely mixed in. Season with salt and pepper.




Ready for the oven.


7. Pour the mixture into prepared pie dish and bake for about 45 minutes or until top is golden brown. (I also added more cheddar to the top during the last 5 minutes of baking). Let cool for about 5 minutes before cutting.

Out of the oven....ready to slice....

Enjoy!