Harvest Month- Greek-Style Quinoa Burgers

I have had very little experience in cooking with the great variety of grains available for your pantry shelves. So a few weeks ago, while thinking about the next challenge I might present to myself once my self-imposed grocery budget was lifted, I thought that the fall season would be the perfect time to try out some of these different grains. Fall, harvest, grains- you get it. So, my goal for the month of November is to try one recipe a week that utilizes a grain that I have never cooked with before. And with that in mind I went searching for my first recipe while meal planning this weekend. I rather quickly found this recipe, which is from Martha Stewart's wholeliving . I recently had a more or less failed attempt at making baked falafel, so this recipe seemed like a good challenge in a slightly similar vein. And I had a much more successful attempt with this one. These came out so deliciously! They were also very easy to make and despite my concern that the burgers would not stay together through cooking I had no problems once I chilled them as the recipe suggested. Highly recommend these as a very filling vegetarian meal option. Quinoa is the member of the grain group with the highest amount of protein, so combined with the beans and an egg you definitely don't feel like you've missed out on anything during your meatless meal.

Greek-Style Quinoa Burgers
Recipe from Martha Stewart's wholeliving; Serves 4














1/2 cup rinsed quinoa
1 medium carrot, cut in large chunks
6 scallions, thinly sliced
15 oz. great northern beans, drained and rinsed
1/4 cup plain dried breadcrumbs
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 tablespoon ground cumin
Coarse salt
Ground pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 cup plain nonfat Greek yogurt
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
4 pitas (each 6 inches)
1/2 English cucumber, thinly sliced diagonally

• In a small saucepan, bring 3/4 cup water to a boil; add quinoa, cover, and reduce heat to low. Cook until liquid is absorbed, 12 to 14 minutes; set aside.
• In a food processor, pulse carrot until finely chopped. Add cooked quinoa, half the scallions, beans, breadcrumbs, egg, cumin, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper; pulse until combined but still slightly chunky.
• Form mixture into four 3/4-inch-thick paties (dip hands in water to prevent sticking). If too soft, refrigerate 10 minutes to firm. In a large nonstick skillet, heat oil over medium; cook burgers until browned and cooked through, 8 to 10 minutes per side.
• Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine yogurt, lemon juice, and the remaining scallions; season with salt and pepper. Serve burgers in pita topped with cucumber and yogurt sauce.

My notes: I served this with a hastily thrown together greek salad, using some of the cucumber, a 1/4 of a red onion I had in the fridge, two seeded tomatoes, juice of half a lemon, drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkling of feta. Oh boy, I love Greek salad- even a hasty one! The tart dressing and salad, and salty feta were good compliments to the slightly spicy burgers. Wetting your hands when forming the patties and refrigerating them are both key, in my opinion, to getting these burgers ready for the pan. I definitely look forward to making these again.

No Heat Week Part 2- Greek Salad

Another thing I relied on during our week without air conditioning was healthy prepared or ready to eat items from the grocery store. One night I paired store-bought roasted red pepper hummus, marinated olives, and whole wheat pitas with some fresh, summery crudites and a Greek salad I threw together. Not a smidge of "cooking" involved in this meal, but plenty of flavor all the same.

Fast Greek Salad
Recipe adapted from Everyday Food














2 plum tomatoes, seeded and chunked
1 small cucumber, seeded and chunked
1/2 red onion, cut into chunks
1/4-1/2 cup coarsely chopped parsley
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
coarse salt and ground pepper

• Combine tomatoes, cucumber, onion and parsley in a large bowl. In a smaller bowl, whisk together lemon juice and olive oil. Toss vegetables with dressing and cheese. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

The Way I Ate

Tuesday night Josh was going to be leaving from drum lessons and going straight to sub in for a friend's drummer at a show, meaning I would be dining alone. And that was fine with me, because as much as I would miss him I was pretty excited about vegging out in front of the TV and noshing on my planned dinner for the evening. This idea come from Everyday Food, and they title it the Middle Eastern Platter. I just call it heaven. The only real preparation is the salad. I buy red pepper hummus and marinated olives from the bulk bar at Central Market. The recipe calls for a block of feta sliced, but I just buy the crumbled kind, I find it just as easy and then I have feta that I can use for salad, pasta, or pizza too. I ate this for dinner Tuesday night, while watching The Way We Were. Luckily I finished eating before I started crying, as the olives and feta are salty enough without my tears, ha. And then I had the same darn thing for lunch yesterday and today. Divine!

Middle Eastern Platter
Recipe from Everyday Food; Serves 4














3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 plum tomatoes, seeded and diced
1 English cucumber, seeded and diced
1 cup coarsely chopped fresh parsley
1 small red onion, diced
coarse salt and ground pepper
8 oz. store-bough hummus
1/2 teaspoon paprika
8 oz. feta cheese
1 cup black olives, such as kalamata
4 pita breads

• In a small container, combine lemon juice and 1 tablespoon olive oil. In a medium container, combine tomatoes, cucumber, and parsley.
• Add onion and dressing to vegetables. Season with salt and pepper and toss to combine. Serve with hummus (sprinkled with paprika and remaining olive oil), feta (thickly sliced), olives, and pita. Serve.

My notes: As you may have noticed those aren't kalamata olives on my plate. I usually choose different olives each time I make this, cause I love olives. this time I chose some that were marinated with garlic and they were delish! This is a great thing to serve when you're having friends over. I'm imagining it as a nice nosh during a board game. If you want to prep it ahead of time keep the dressing, onions, and vegetables separate, tossing just before serving. Also, since I get red peppered hummus I don't bother with the oil & paprika on that. And I use whole wheat pitas cut into wedges to devour all the goodies!