Cheesy Vegetable Quinoa Bites

I just love these cheesy vegetable quinoa bites, because they are the perfect little healthy snack or appetizer. The yield of this recipe is 24, and the ingredients are simple and can vary, depending on what vegetables you have available at the time. Sometimes when following recipes, if I don't have the exact ingredient or vegetable requested, I modify the recipe to what I do have available, and it always still comes out great.

As I think I've discussed in a previous blog, quinoa is a grain that is becoming increasingly popular. You can now find it in grocery stores like Publix, whereas before you could mainly just find it in specialty health food stores. You can cook it just like rice- by boiling in an inch or two of water, until it is absorbed by the grain. Something awesome about quinoa is that it has a pretty high protein & fiber content- both of which will help keep you feeling full longer for less calories (1 cup of cooked quinoa has about 8 grams of protein, 5 grams of fiber and 220 calories) . This is great for vegetarians, who may sometimes struggle to get enough protein in their diets. Quinoa is also gluten free, so those with Celiac disease can enjoy it. However in this recipe, a small amount of flour is used so a gluten-free option should be substituted if you have a sensitivity to gluten.

Ingredients
- 2 cups cooked quinoa
-2 large eggs
-3 carrots, shredded
-1 cup red bell pepper
-2 teaspoons garlic
-1/2 cup green onion
- 2 tablespoons flour
-4 oz non-fat or reduced fat cheddar cheese, shredded
-Salt & pepper, to taste

*You can also choose other vegetables, such as spinach, shallots, onion, etc.






Directions 
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees
2. Lightly spray a mini muffin tin, or just a baking pan, with cooking spray
3. In a large bowl, combine all of the ingredients together, mixing until combined
4.Using a tablespoon, place rounded drops of the mixture into each cup of the mini muffin tin or baking pan
5. Bake until lightly golden, about 15-20 minutes
6. Serve immediately for freshest taste

I didn't use the mini muffin tin, as you can see in the picture, but really the only difference is that the quinoa bites will look more uniform and probably a little better if placed in the muffin tins.

Tricolor Quinoa with Salmon & Edamame

This morning I ate a kashi bar, some carrots, and headed to the gym for 45 mins of cardio on the treadmill and some ab & arm work outs. Afterward I was super hungry and wanted to make something that would fill me up. I decided to make tricolor quinoa with salmon and edamame, one of my quick at-home meal favorites. It took just 10 minutes to prepare, and I have all the nutrition info for this meal.
For those who don't know what quinoa is, it's a whole grain with a crunchy texture that is becoming a big trend lately. Personally I love the texture. There are different kinds of quinoa, ranging in color from a light tan color to a dark brown color. The kind I used was tri-color, so a mixture of 3 different kinds/colors of quinoa.

So first I placed half a cup of quinoa and about 1/4 cup water in a medium sauce pan on medium high heat for about 8 minutes. Quinoa cooks similarly to rice. I waited until the water had been absorbed and set the quinoa to the side.
As the quinoa was cooking I microwaved the salmon, for 4 minutes, wrapped in wax paper. This is the brand I bought:

It's very reasonably priced and tastes delicous. The package contains two 3 oz salmon filets, and they are seasoned very well (and less than 250 mg sodium in one filet).

Next I microwaved half a bag (2/3 cup) of edamame for 2 minutes.

And that's basically it! I added pepper to the edamame and the salmon, and crushed red pepper to the salmon (I like spicy food)

I feel like the picture does not do this meal justice, but it was a very delicious and filling meal! I could have used just 1/4 cup quinoa to save some calories, but since I had just worked out and was pretty hungry I opted for the 1/2 cup.

Nutrition Information & Details
1/2 cup tricolor quinoa, 3 oz salmon, 2/3 cups edamame: 560 calories, 13 g fat, 1 g saturated fat, 7 g fiber, 30 g protein, 75 g carbs and just 280 mg sodium in the whole meal.

If you want to cut back on the calories some, reduce the quinoa to 1/4 cup and including the salmon and edamame that will provide 390 kcals, 10.5 g fat, 1 g saturated fat, 3 g fiber, 43 g carbs, 25 g protein.

The best things about this meal:
- Very low in saturated fat. Recommendations are to have less than 10 grams a day, and this meal has just 1 gram.
- 7 grams of fiber- will keep you full longer
- Low in sodium. 280 mg is very low for a full meal. If you go to a restaurant or a fast food restaurant, most meals will have at least 1,000 mg sodium, and the recommendation for most people is under 2,000 mg a day.
-30 grams of protein will keep you feeling full longer.