Cranberry Orange Quinoa Loaf

Old friends are the souls that connect us to our past and keep us rooted in the future.  I had the pleasure of lunching with an old pal today for her birthday.  A mother to four busy kids, she is quite the remarkable woman.  I delivered lunch to her home (kale salad and rutuabaga soup) and this loaf for dessert.  We lunched, we caught up and mostly we basked in a quiet hour for two busy moms to reflect on the journey of parenting, marriage and our own happiness.

Poblanos stuffed with Romano Beans, Red Quinoa & Queso Fresco

 It's been a weird summer of weather for us, but this last week has been fantastic.  Warm sunny days and cool evenings for sleeping.  We've been dining outside as much as possible.  Jos is away at camp for the week with her best friend and I can't think of a better spot to be.  I was a die-hard camp goer as a kid.  It was the best week of the summer for me and eventually, my first job.  Working as a camp counsellor is a dream gig.  Sunshine, peers and little people who look up to you all day long- what's not to love?  It took a long time to get over the camp life, when I finally got a real job in my late teens.  If only life was as easy as summer camp.

Quinoa Roasted Beet, Kale & Hazelnut Salad

Once a  week this summer, I've tried to make a new salad using grains and veggies.  Making it on Sunday afternoon, it provides several days of lunches for Don and I through the week at work.  My goal has been to not repeat a recipe, and so far, so good.  It certainly helps that there are so many vegetables in season right now!  I'm not sure how much longer I can keep this challenge up, but it's 12 weeks so far and I don't see an end in sight.

Pesto Quinoa Salad

I don't like to repeat meals too much at home.  Whenever I am asked, "what is your favourite meal?" my answer is, "the next one!"  While I love to try new things, inevitably there are some meals that are repeated.  This quinoa dish is one that I've had a lot of requests to bring to potlucks, cottages and lunch dates.  One particular potluck involved a group of hockey coaches standing by the dish stating, "what is that?" followed by "looks kind of weird?".  Imagine my satisfaction when not only did they go back for seconds, they asked for the recipe.