Meat Hater

I took a bite out of the kids' hot, juicy grilled hamburger yesterday and had to spit it out.  Same thing happened when I tried to eat a spoonful of taco meat last week.  It's getting worse...my dislike of red meat.

Then there's cheese. Unless it's ricotta or cottage (which I like), to me cheese is like eating the gristle and fat which is cut off of a T-bone or sirloin steak.  Same texture in my mind.

I tolerate chicken and turkey but would rather choose whole grains, beans, or veggies.  And peanut butter, OH HEAVEN!  If they don't have PB in heaven I don't want in.  Well, not really, but you get my point.  I eat it several times throughout the day.
 
All this made me start thinking about whether or not I'm getting enough protein in my diet.  So I did some reading and learned that I am getting way more protein that I ever though possible!  My love of whole grains, beans, veggies, and PB in combinations make whole proteins.  Yee-haw!  I am going to continue to learn about vegetarian eating even though I'm NOT a vegetarian, just to be sure I've got my i's dotted and t's crossed.
 
While reading I discovered a "new" ancient grain called quinoa.  It's an interesting food that contains enough amino acids to make a complete protein in and of itself.  I decided to try it out.  The result:  loved it!  So far I've tried two recipes using it and I enjoyed both.  Here's one:
 
 

Quinoa and Black Beans

1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1 tablespoon minced garlic
3/4 cup uncooked quinoa
1 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 teaspoon ground cumin
pinch teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
salt and black pepper to taste
1 cup frozen corn kernels
1 (15 ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro (optional for garnish)

Directions
Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the onion and saute until lightly browned.
Add garlic and saute an additional 30 seconds. Mix quinoa into the saucepan and cover with chicken broth.  Season with cumin, cayenne pepper, salt & pepper. Bring the mixture to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes.  Stir frozen corn and black beans into the saucepan, and continue to simmer about 5 minutes until heated through.
 
Well, I burned the onions and left out the garlic too.  I didn't bother with cilantro.  But even despite my horrible cooking, I really liked it!