Balsamic Green Beans with Garlic, Red Onion and Almonds

I love buying local during the spring and summer seasons. There's something about being outside in the sunshine as you stock up on fresh veggies and fruit. Andrew and I recently took a stroll down to Pittsburgh's Strip District, which is home to the famous Wholey's Seafood, various odds and ends shops as well as fresh 

produce and meat markets. We got a little excited about how much fresh vegetables and fruit we could get for a very reasonable price.

One of our over zealous purchases was green beans. I enjoy pretty much all vegetables but green beans was one I was not familiar cooking with. I'm all about steaming with salt and pepper but we wanted to get a little creative with it. Needless to say, we'll be making this dish again soon.  

Ingredients:

- 1 1/2- 2 cups fresh green beans, ends cut off and washed

- About five chopped almonds

- 1-2 tbsp olive oil

- 1/4 medium sized red onion, diced 

- 1-2 cloves of garlic, minced

- 3-4 tbsp balsamic dressing

Recipe:
Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees.

Sautee in a large pan the olive oil, garlic and red onion until lightly browned. Add the chopped almonds and 1 tablespoon Balsamic Dressing and cook for an additional 2-4 minutes. 

Place washed green beans in a shallow, oven-safe pan. Add the sauteed mixture, stir and then add 1-2 additional tablespoons of Balsamic Dressing. 

Bake 10 minutes, remove to stir thoroughly and then bake for an additional 10 minutes. 

A few recommendations: 

- We didn't add Parmesan cheese but I'd recommend it for the cheese lovers. 

- Mushrooms may also be a delicious addition to this dish

- It will compliment a red meat dish well 

Rice and Beans - Time and Money Saving Lunch

Lunch for the week prepared on Sunday. Time and money saved.

Buying lunch while you are at work is a huge money suck, not to mention that the food is usually over-priced for the quality that you get.  For our first week in Pittsburgh, I did a great job of making salads the night before work and was extremely healthy.  That quickly turned into whatever leftovers we had in the fridge. And that quickly turned into scrambling in the morning to find something to bring with me.  Not the ideal situation to eat healthy and avoid eating crappy food, plus I would end up "supplementing" my lunch at the cafeteria.

To combat this, we started making a large batch of rice on Sunday that could be taken for  lunch every day of the week. What's that you say? "I want something interesting and rice is boring?"  There my friend, you are wrong.

We add the basics to the rice and then spice it up throughout the week.  Here is our basic recipe:

Ingredients:

3 cups cooked brown rice (or white - brown has more fiber and is a little heartier)

1 can sweet corn - drained

1 can chick peas (or black beans)

1 cup chopped jalapenos

1 cup choppen onion (red, white, whatever)

1.5 cups cooked chicken (roasted*, sauteed, whatever)

Seasonings

Recipe:

Put the beans in a small pot over low heat and cover.  Let them cook slow and low.

Heat up some olive oil in a LARGE pan - we use a wok like thingy.  

Throw in the onions, cook for 2-3 minutes.

Add jalapenos and corn.  Add seasonings such as garlic, salt, pepper, chili powder, cumin, oregano; cook for 2-3 minutes.

Drain the beans of their liquid.

Add chicken, rice, and beans to the vegetables - mix thoroughly.

Season as needed.

Multiple Colors = Multiple Flavors = Happy Tastebuds

*Our chicken cooking trick - pre-heat the oven to 500 degrees.  Throw the chicken on a pan lined with foil and season both sides (may we recommend some Montreal Chicken Seasoning?).  Cook for 17 minutes.  The chicken with be slightly crispy on the outside and very juicy inside.  From there, we will finely chop the chicken and add it to the rice mix.

Potential additions to the base mixture include finely chopped ham (left over from Easter dinner), a small can of crushed tomatoes, any other of your favorite vegetables.  

How to keep it interesting throughout the week:

Use the full arsenal of your refrigerator.  Add salsas, hot sauces, soy sauce, whatever you can think of to add a little zing.  Our finding is that flavor is very important in how satisfied we are after lunch.

Sweet and Salty Quinoa with Bacon and Veggies

This dish is a modified version of a Noble Pig recipe.  It's now one of our favorites.

With our version, we combined sauteed chopped yellow onion and green pepper, cooked quinoa and smoked bacon, sugar snap peas and Honey-Lime dressing. The dressing adds a little sweetness, the bacon adds a little saltiness and then we topped ours with Sriracha that added a little spiciness. And that's why it is now one of our favorite recipes. It's got it all. It's pretty healthy (especially if you cut down the bacon or use turkey bacon; either way there's enough going on that the bacon doesn't overwhelm the dish). We ate ours at room temperature with a glass of Pinot Grigio.

Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup sugar snap peas
- One green pepper
- 1/4 medium yellow onion
- 1 cup quinoa
- 5 slices smoked bacon
- 1-2 tablespoon olive oil

Honey Lime Dressing:
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 tablespoon lime juice (or squeezed from one lime)
- Seasoning: garlic, crushed red pepper, paprika, salt and pepper

Recipe:
Cook the one cup quinoa per packed directions (one cup quinoa with two cups water). While it was cooking, I continued with the rest of the recipe. Move quinoa to a bowl once complete to prevent drying out/burning. I didn't cover it and allowed it to cool a little.

Mix all dressing ingredients and set aside.

Cook the bacon in a sauce pan. Place the cooked pieces on a paper towel to soak up the excess fat and allow to cool before slicing into small pieces.

Saute the chopped yellow onion and green pepper with olive oil, salt and pepper on medium heat until softened.

Bring a large saucepan to a boil. While that is heating up, prepare an ice bath large enough to submerge the snap peas. Place the sugar snap peas in the boiling water for 1 minute, remove and place in the ice bath for two minutes, then remove and place on a paper towel to dry. Slice into thirds or fourths.

Lastly, combine quinoa, snap peas, sauteed veggies and dressing in a large bowl. Mix well and then add the bacon, stirring until thoroughly mixed.

We topped ours with ground pepper and a little Sriracha. Delicious!

Easy Homemade Hummus

We go through a lot of hummus. It's a great snack that we eat regularly, if not daily. Problem is though, it can get expensive quickly. 

A can of chick peas is cheap and a container of tahini goes a long way. There are a lot of recipes online (most pretty similar) and the ingredients list on our favorite brand is pretty short. One difference between the two is cooked vs uncooked chick peas. We made it both ways. And cooked is definitely what we prefer. It's creamier with more flavor. We add whatever flavors we happened to have a lot of at the time- garlic, jalapenos, hot sauce, onion, etc- and seasonings. Mix it in a food processor/blender or even mash yourself. And that's pretty much it. We usually double the recipe and it lasts anywhere from 1-3 weeks, depending on our carrot supply. We also usually make ours with jalapenos (shocking) but you can substitute with something else or eliminate. 

Ingredients:

- 1 can cooked chick peas

- 2 tablespoons tahini

-  Seasonings to taste: salt, pepper, cumin, garlic

- 1 tablespoon olive oil

- 1-2 tablespoon lemon juice*

- 1/4 cup jalapenos chopped*

*Sometimes we'll add jalapeno juice instead of lemon juice. 

Recipe:

Cook chick peas (do not drain) on low for about 30 minutes or until soft. Add to blender, or mash yourself (which is easy if cooked enough) until smooth. Add remaining ingredients (add the olive oil slowly to get your preferred consistency). Taste testing is the best method to determine appropriate amount for each ingredient. 

Enjoy with your favorite snacks! 

Easter Dinner

This Easter was a little different than usual for us. It was our first in Pittsburgh and our first without family. However, we made a special day out of it and capped it off with a special meal.

We found a good deal on ham steaks at Costco (labeled gluten free clear as day!). Brittany's mom had given us a pineapple the week before, and we had some quinoa salad left over from the night before. We stuffed the quinoa salad into some fresh tomatoes, topped them with Parmesan and fresh cracked pepper, and broiled them to blend it all together. We sautéed the pineapple with butter and brown sugar, adding a sweet side to accompany the spicy brown mustard served with the ham.

Ham steak prepared according to package instructions

Quinoa salad stuffed tomatoes
Ingredients

Quinoa salad
Veggie Parmesan Topping
Cracked Black Pepper
Roma Tomatoes

Recipe
Half the tomatoes long ways and scoop out the insides. Stuff as much quinoa salad into the tomato as you can. Then try harder and mound as much on top as possible. Cover the top with Parmesan topping and black pepper. Broil for ten minutes.

Pineapple
Ingredients
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 cup cubed pineapple

Recipe
Melt butter in saucepan, stir in pineapple, top with brown sugar. Stir until coated.

Serving
Spicy brown mustard on the side.

Spring Time Quinoa Salad

Quinoa salad is to pasta salad as
turkey sausage lettuce wrap is to hot dog.
Gluten free and slightly healthier.

We thoroughly enjoy cooking with quinoa.  It gives a great texture to our dishes with a flavor similar to pasta.  However, we still have not managed to figure out how much to make for one meal.  It seems that a tablespoon of uncooked quinoa makes about 5 gallons of prepared quinoa.  That may be an exaggeration, but we are frequently faced with an abundance of left-over quinoa, such as after making a quinoa-kale-sweet potato dish.

This leftover presented itself on a Saturday night before heading to PNC Park to watch the Phillies and Pirates play some baseball (if you can call it that).  We had decided to make a turkey sausage lettuce wrap for dinner (even though PNC park has gluten free hot dogs) as a healthy alternative.  What better to go along with a lettuce wrap than a fresh veggie and quinoa salad.  We added fresh chopped red onion, broccoli, carrots, and mushrooms with Italian dressing for a quick, easy, and delicious side dish.

Red Bridge (Gluten Free!) at PNC Park

Ingredients
One cup prepared quinoa (chilled)
1/4 cup chopped red onion
1/4 cup chopped mushrooms
1/4 cup chopped broccoli
1/4 cup chopped carrots
1/4 cup chopped tomato
2-3 tablespoons Italian dressing
Veggie-parmesan cheese (to top)
Fresh cracked black pepper (to top)

Recipe

Combine quinoa, onion, mushrooms, broccoli, tomato, and carrots - stir well.  Add Italian dressing, continue stirring.  Plate and top with parmesan and black pepper.

Serving suggestion - add spicy brown mustard and our kick ass relish to your lettuce wrap for a zing.

Quinoa with Sweet Potato, Kale, Onion and Mushrooms

Quinoa is a favorite of ours. It's versatile, quick and easy to make and is a great source of protein. I think it's a lighter grain therefore I enjoy it with usually a heavier sauce, such as sausage and marinara or sweet potatoes and veggies!


While this is not necessarily a difficult recipe to make, I will admit preparing it (specifically the kale) can take some time. We recently prepared this dish on a day we were both home early from work. However, it does only require quinoa, mushrooms, kale, sweet potatoes and onions (as well as your favorite spices). For us, it was garlic and red pepper with a few dashes of salt and pepper.

Ingredients:
- One medium to large sweet potato
- One small yellow onion
- One large bunch of kale, washed and cut with stems removed
- 4-6 chopped mushrooms
- 1/2 cup white wine (preferably dry)
- Seasonings: garlic, red pepper, salt and pepper
- 1 cup quinoa, cooked

Recipe:
We started with cooking the one cup of quinoa, since it takes about 20 minutes to prepare. Nothing special here, just followed the directions on the package.

Next, heat a large saucepan with 1-2 tablespoons olive oil on medium heat. Start with sauteeing the onion and sweet potato once the oil is warm. Allow the sweet potatoes to begin to soften, add the chopped mushrooms, stirring occasionally. Once the mushrooms begin to soften, add the chopped kale and white wine. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover and stir frequently. I also added more garlic and red pepper flakes at this time.

Keep the saucepan on medium-low heat until all vegetables have softened. Most liquid will be absorbed at this point. Don't forget to check back on your quinoa! I've never experienced burnt quinoa but I imagine it probably doesn't taste too good. The quinoa will most likely be done before the kale and sweet potatoes. I usually put the quinoa in a bowl and cover with a towel or foil until the meal is complete. Add some of the sautee to a bowl of quinoa, top with parmesan if desired and enjoy!

We've made this recipe a few times and enjoy it every time. I've had a glass of Pinot Grigio and Pinot Noir with it at different occasions and while both went well, I prefer the Pinot Noir with it.

Kale, Onion and Parmesan Quiche with a Sweet Wine

We had an abundance of kale  and onion, both of which needed to be prepared soon. With Easter around the corner, we figured a quiche would be perfect!

It was our first time preparing the dish. With a little help from the interwebs and the addition of our own tastes, we enjoyed this healthy dish for Easter Sunday brunch.

We added about a cup of sauteed kale, onions and spices to an egg mixture consisting of eggs, almond milk and dairy-free parmesan cheese, and baked it until cooked through. We prepared this a week before Easter and after baking, allowed it to cool then froze it until Easter morning.

Kale Sautee Ingredients:

- One large bunch of fresh kale, washed and chopped with stems off

- One small yellow onion, chopped

- 1-2 tablespoons olive oil

- 1/2 cup water

- Seasoning to taste: red pepper flakes, garlic, salt and pepper

Kale Sautee Recipe:

Heat one to two tablespoons olive oil on medium heat. Add the chopped onion, kale and seasonings. Sautee and mix until kale begins to soften, a few minutes. Add water, cover and reduce to medium-low heat. Keep on heat until kale has completely softened, drain water and put aside.

Quiche Ingredients:

- 4 large eggs

- One cup Silk Almond Milk

- 1/4 Cup Dairy-free parmesan cheese, plus a little extra

- Kale Sautee

Quiche Recipe:

Beat eggs, milk and cheese together. Mix in kale sautee. Add a little more pepper and red pepper flakes. Transfer the mixture to a 9" pie pan, sprinkle with additional parmesan and bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

We enjoyed our crustless breakfast with a Trader Joe's hash brown (soon to come) as well as an adult beverage in honor of my grandparents, who both passed away within the past five years and enjoyed themselves a glass of vino. They lived a majority of their lives together on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, and specifically spent their last few years together in Solomon's Island. I was excited to find at Christmas that my aunt and mom both bought me a red and white bottle from Solomon's Island Winery.  However, I enjoy dry wine and these wines were a bit too sweet for me. I just so happened to be drinking cranberry-raspberry juice that morning and tried a little with some of the sweet, white wine... Delicious! I did equal parts juice and wine and it paired well with the hash browns and quiche! 

Relish with a Kick

To be clear, relish is gluten free.  This relish is just better!  We gave the standard store bought chopped pickles a little bit of support with some chopped onions and jalapenos.  We also threw in a dash of red pepper flakes for giggles.  Top your hot dog with this guy and you won't even remember that there is no bun.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup relish
1/2 cup chopped onions
1/4 to 1/2 cup chopped pickled jalapenos
Red pepper flakes to taste.

Recipe:
Mix the ingredients together thoroughly.

Mozzarella Sticks

Who doesn't love mozzarella sticks? I couldn't tell you the last time I enjoyed the delicious appetizer. Noble Pig, a website favorite of mine, posted a recipe similar to this one but using won ton wrappers, unfortunately not a GF food. However, I was able to find Vietnamese spring roll wrappers that substituted very well! Trader Joes makes a block of soy mozzarella cheese that is one of my favorite cheeses. Combine that with pepperoni, roll it in a spring roll, pan fry and serve with a side of marinara sauce! Yum!

Ingredients:
Mozzarella Sticks
- Blue Dragon Spring Roll Wrappers
- One block of Soy Mozzarella Cheese (from Trader Joes)
- Pepperoni Slices (3-4/stick)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil

Marinara Sauce
- 1 can tomato sauce
- 1 large splash red wine
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/4 cup onion
- Seasonings: oregano, red pepper flakes, garlic, salt and pepper

Marinara Sauce Recipe:
I sauteed the onions in olive oil until lightly browned and added the can of tomato sauce. I added one to two large splashes of red wine and the seasonings and let simmer while I prepared the mozzarella sticks, stirring occasionally.

Mozzarella Stick Recipe:
I sliced the block of mozzarella cheese into 6 1/4" slices while letting the olive oil and wok get hot. I placed one spring roll wrapper in the shallow tupperware filled with hot water for 10-15 seconds until completely soft. Once soft, I placed it on the large plate, put the mozzarella slice in the middle and the 3-4 pepperoni slices on top.  I crossed one side of the wrapper to the other, tightly against the pepperoni, folded up the ends and then rolled it to close the wrapper. Next, I placed it in the wok until all slides were browned and repeated.


Easy and delicious!

We enjoyed ours with a salad and glass of Pinot Nior! 

Avoiding Sneaky Gluten- Chex Mix

Homemade Chex Mix is a delicious and easy GF snack that most people enjoy. It's my go-to snack to bring to tailgates, weekend trips and even to work. I prefer salty over sweet, especially because there is usually crushed red pepper involved.

Chex Cereal offers a large list of recipes, even a lot of GF options. I have followed a few but recently have adopted my own. It's easier, faster and more specific to what I like. It's also easily adaptable to add gluten items such as pretzels and cheez-its, I usually make a few batches of each GF and gluten filled.

I tend to use the microwave to prepare it, I don't have the patience for the baking option. The first time I made Chex Mix I baked it and I can't tell a difference between the two cooking options. Using the microwave to prepare it takes less time and allows me to add more seasoning if I need to.

I use a small mixing bowl and the largest bowl or tupperware container I have appropriate for my microwave. In the small bowl, I mix about 2 tablespoons olive oil, garlic, red pepper flakes, cumin and a few splashes of hot sauce. Sometimes I'll add a few splashes of worcestershire sauce. The amount of hot sauce and red pepper flakes depends on the crowd that will be eating this particular batch.

I've found that layering each ingredient helps to ensure equal covering of the seasoning. I usually start with the cereal and lay down a layer in the bowl/tupperware and drizzle a portion of the seasoning mix throughout, mix with a large spoon, and then repeat with additional layers. My order of sequence is usually cereal, pop-corn and then nuts. I do the nuts last because they usually end up at the bottom.

I use rice or corn cereal, I don't have a preference, and fresh popped pop-corn. It's hard to find store bought pop-corn without butter. Fresh popped cuts down the calories and preservatives.  I also use a store bought mix of peanuts, almonds, cashews and brazilian nuts. It's easier to buy one thing and allow for a variety of nuts versus just having peanuts, almonds, etc or having to buy multiple kinds of nuts (which can get expensive).

Once all the ingredients are in the bowl and the seasoning is mixed in, I microwave it for a minute at a time. I repeat this about 3-4 times, mixing in between. I'll check to make sure the seasoning appears to be equally coated and mixed throughout, if not then I add more to it. Allow the Chex Mix to cool for a few hours, maybe sample a few pieces to make sure there is enough garlic and spice, and then enjoy!

Ingredients:
- 4 cups Chex Mix
- 3 cups popped pop-corn
- Nuts
- 2-3 tablespoons olive oil
- Seasoning: red pepper flakes, garlic powder, cumin
- Few splashes hot sauce
- Few splashes worcestershire sauce (optional)

Kale Chips

Spinach has always been my green leafy vegetable of choice. I had leftover kale from a quinoa dish I made. I googled different ways to cook kale and sauteed, stewed and baked were amongst the popular options.

I was intrigued by the idea of kale chips. They ended up being extremely easy to make and surprisingly very delicious. I will think twice about buying regular potato chips again (maybe a little dramatic, but they were that good).

Ingredients:

- One bunch of fresh kale

- 1-2 tablespoons olive oil

- 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

- 1/2 tbsp salt and pepper

Recipe:

We washed and cut the stems off the kale and chopped the leaves into small pieces (about an inch in size). We mixed the chopped kale and olive oil in a bowl, making sure to lightly coat each piece. Next, we added the seasonings and mixed thoroughly. We spread the seasoned kale on a cookie sheet and baked at 275, turning a few times, for about 20 minutes. We allowed them to cool for a few minutes and then they were gone!

Avoiding Sneaky Gluten- Sweet Potato Fries with Sriracha Ketchup

Fries are one bar food that could be easily shared with a group of people and would usually not bother me if eaten in small amounts. That was until recently. I was told by a restaurant manager that fries are no longer GF, even if fried in a separate fryer. Apparently they fry better after being rolled in flour and this trend is becoming more popular within the restaurant community.

We decided to bake our own version at home to go with turkey burgers we made. And what goes best with fries? Sriracha ketchup! We used one large sweet potato, sliced into wedges and tossed in seasoned olive oil. The olive oil was seasoned with cumin, red pepper flakes, salt, pepper and garlic powder. The fries were spread out on a cookie sheet and a little more garlic power and red pepper flakes were added. The Sriracha Ketchup was made with ketchup, few tablespoons Sriracha, cumin and red pepper flakes. Honestly, taste testing the ketchup was best for determining proper amounts of each ingredient. 

Ingredients:

- 1 large sweet potato

- 2-3 tbsp olive oil

- Seasoning: cumin, red pepper flakes, salt, pepper and garlic powder

- 1/4 c ketchup

- 2-3 tbsp Sriracha

- Seasoning: cumin and red pepper flakes

Recipe:

We combined all the spices with the 2-3 tbsp olive oil in a large bowl. We added the sweet potato wedges to the seasoned olive oil, tossing them around to make sure they were all covered. They were spread across a cookie sheet, added additional red pepper flakes and garlic powder and then baked them at 450 for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally. While they were baking, I added the Sriracha, ketchup and seasoning in a small bowl. This made a lot but I will never let ketchup go to waste. I put it on a lot of foods.

Avoiding Sneaky Gluten - Taco Seasoning

Here, we introduce a new segment called "Avoiding Sneaky Gluten". Gluten (that little freaker-sneaker) frequently makes it's way into foods that you would not suspect. We're going to try to profile some of these sneaky foods with ways to avoid them.

Usually, Tex-Mex meals are the most delicious and easy to make naturally gluten-free. Rice and corn products combined with veggies, yum! I have made this known to my friends and family for the main purpose of social gatherings. My mom, who loves to cook and is quite good at it, has had 24 years to get used to cooking dairy free options for me. This whole gluten-free thing is new and tricky. While Tex-Mex has seemed to be the safest meal option, there have been multiple times recently that I've had to enjoy vegan tacos instead of the regular chicken, turkey or beef options because of the taco seasoning they used with the meat.

My friends and family members, as well as myself the first few times, were shocked when they realized the seasoning contained gluten. It was something I never even considered would bother me until I randomly checked because, well, ya just never know with gluten. I'm glad I did and have warned my friends and family about it. Even the taco seasonings that I have found to be "gluten free" contain not so great ingredients, such as dairy and MSG. I try to avoid MSG if possible after reading how it affects other people. So this has led to making a more natural and gluten-free version. We made it in bulk so we even saved money in the end... Healthier and Cheaper!

Ingredients (from allrecipes.com: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/taco-seasoning-i/)

1 tablespoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon black pepper

Common Taco Seasonings and Links to ingredients:
McCormick - Contains dairy ingredients.

Pace - Contains Wheat Flour   
Ortega - Contains Maltodextrin

Old El Paso - Contains MSG

Quinoa with Chunky Tomato Sauce

Most gluten free pasta stinks.  I said it and I stick by it.  But gluten free substitutes can be fricken awesome!  Quinoa provides a great hearty taste and is quite easy to prepare.  So tonight, we went with a chunky tomato sauce, turkey sausage and quinoa.  Once again, we went with a spicy tomato sauce similar to the pizza sauce we made, just with a few more fresh veggies.



Thick cut onions, peppers and tomatoes started out in olive oil and Italian spices with a splash of red wine.  Then came the turkey sausage chunks and tomato sauce.

Throw it over the quinoa and voila!

Ingredients
1 medium yellow onion chopped
1 large bell pepper (we used orange) chopped
1 large tomato chopped
1 turn of olive oil
Basil, oregano, garlic, crushed red pepper, salt, black pepper
1 cup of turkey sausage crumbles (cook according to package directions)
14 ounces of tomato sauce

1 cup quinoa (cook according to package directions)

Recipe
Saute the vegetables over medium heat with spices.
After the vegetables have softened, add a splash of red wine and the sausage (cooked), allowing to cook for about 5 more minutes.

(At this point, it is a good idea to start the quinoa, giving the sauce enough time to cook.)

Add the tomato sauce to the veggies, throw in some more spices and cover, cooking over low heat until the quinoa is done.  Again, remember the salt to counteract the sweetness of the canned tomato sauce.