Cilantro shrimp and quinoa

As I mentioned, last week was amazingly busy. So busy in fact, that I had to pick an ingredient out of thin air and meal plan and grocery shop on the fly. I made it through just fine and decided on cilantro for last week’s theme, and some of our favorite recipes.

We started with a turkey taco salad. It’s one of our favorites and it included: pinto beans, olives, tomatoes, avocado,cheese and of course, cilantro. We combine salsa and fat-free sour cream to dress the salad and love it. If you haven’t tried mixing these two together, try it!

I also turned to Pinterest (of course) for some other recipes. I took a few ideas and landed on a hybrid dish. I made a batch of quinoa, with water, salt, pepper and 1 tsp of olive oil, and sauteed some shrimp, both just as I normally do. As a finishing touch (and to incorporate cilantro into the dish) I added lime juice, some lime zest, and lots of cilantro to both the shrimp and the quinoa. We enjoyed my favorite kale salad with the lime-cilantro goodies.

We also enjoyed a favorite of ours: a variation on Cooking Light’s hominy chili. I’m a bit of a spice wuss and this chili has just enough spice for me. We added cheese, sour cream and of course cilantro! And, a special treat for you: our chicken and hominy chili recipe.

Delicious… Hominy chicken chili

Hominy chili with beans (from Cooking Light) 

• 2 teaspoons vegetable oil
• 2 teaspoons bottled minced garlic
• 4 teaspoons chili powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 2 (15.5-ounce) cans hominy, drained
• 1 (15-ounce) can red beans, drained
• 2 (12.5-ounce) cans of cooked white breast chicken
• 1 (14.5-ounce) can no-salt-added diced tomatoes, undrained
• 1 (14.5-ounce) can no-salt-added stewed tomatoes, undrained and chopped
• A few dallops of fat-free sour cream
• A few pinches Mexican cheese
• Half a bunch of fresh cilantro, chopped

1. Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat.
2. Add garlic; sauté until fragrant.
3. Stir in chili powder, cumin, beans, chicken and tomatoes; bring to a boil.
4. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, 15 minutes.
5. Serve and top each serving with sour cream, cheese and cilantro.
6. And enjoy!