Paper Chef #14: Red Quinoa with Curried Yogurt, Cashews and Baby Apples

Quinoa. Huh. Our household is not especially enamored of grains, prejudicially associating them with hippie health food. And lord knows, we’d rather not be healthy. Over the past year the occassional riff on tabbouleh has appeared on our table, acceptable because we put lots of chopped bits in it—fennel, dried cranberries, mint, etc. With add-ins in mind, I carefully embarked on my first Paper Chef endeavor—combining quinoa, yogurt, cashews and anything baby into a delectable dish.

I’m not sure I reached delectable heights, but my Red Quinoa with Curried Yogurt, Cashews and Baby Apples was solidly tasty. It would serve well as a bed for grilled chicken or fish, and I’d pack it on a picnic or in my lunch. All ingredients came from the crunchy health food store down the street, which offered many quinoa choices, yet only one type of expensive, unroasted, organic cashews. Officially, the red quinoa is Inca Red, according to the box it’s a heirloom variety know as Pasankalla. Having never had quinoa before I couldn’t compare the taste, but the reddish brown coloring was pleasant.

The "baby" apples are a mystery—I found them unlabled in the produce section and stockperson hadn’t a clue. They weren’t as tart as I expected, but a squeeze of lemon as I chopped perked them up.

Before I post the recipe, I must fess up—the curried yogurt idea came from a quinoa recipe on epicurious.com, found when I did a search for ideas on how quinoa is served.

Red Quinoa with Curried Yogurt, Cashews and Baby Apples

1 c. red quinoa
1/3 c. yogurt
1 tbsp. curry powder
1 tsp. powdered ginger
1 tbsp. lime juice
salt n’ pepper
1 finely chopped red bell pepper
A handful of finely chopped green onions
3-4 chopped baby apples (squeeze of lemon to prevent browning)
¼ c. cashews, toasted and crushed

Put quinoa and 2 c. water in saucepan, bring to a boil, turn down to a simmer, cover and cook until all water is absorbed, about 15 minutes. Set aside.

Mix yogurt, curry powder, ginger, lime juice, salt n’ pepper in small bowl. Toss quinoa, bell pepper, green onions, apple, cashews and curry mixture together in large bowl. Squeeze a bit more lime juice into mixture, stir, and serve.


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