This recipe kind of just ‘happened’ one day. I had a small portion of leftover roasted vegetables from the previous day’s dinner (roasted chicken and roasted root veggies…YUM!) so I contemplated on how I could actually transform this side dish into a main meal (i.e., make a large enough portion for me to eat as an actual ‘meal!’)

So, I through some (red) quinoa into the mix, added some toasted pine nuts and voila!

This ‘main’ meal is satisfying and filling, yet also healthy. It’s packed with protein and essential vitamins and has the perfect combination of nuttiness from the quinoa and sweetness from the caramelized veggies.

If you do make extra quinoa simply store in the fridge in air tight container for a future meal. I usually make a large batch of quinoa and then add different condiment to it to create a variety of meals for the week such as; Quinoa Tabbouleh, Quinoa Sweet Potato Hash and Eggs, Pesto Prosciutto and Mozzarella Stuffed Quinoa Arancini, or a sweet rendition such as Banana Coconut Quinoa Cookies.

*As for the ratio, for this recipe I used about 1 cup of cooked quinoa mixed with 1 cup of veggies but you can use any ratio you prefer.

Ingredients
about 1 cup cooked quinoa
about 1 cup roasted root veggies
1/4 cup toasted pine nuts (optional)
crumbled goat or feta cheese (optional-quantity as desired)

For quinoa cooking instructions read here; Quintessential Quinoa.

The recipe for the deliciously sweet roasted root vegetables (pictured below) can be found HERE.

The combined recipe is pretty basic….while the veggies are roasting in the oven prepare the quinoa on the stovetop. To toast the pine nuts, heat a small frying pan on medium heat for about 1 minutes, add the pine nuts and toast for 2-3 minutes, tossing often to avoid burning. Remove from the pan immediately and set aside or add right to the quinoa.

Once the quinoa and veggies are cooked simply mix all the ingredients and serve!