MidWeek Munchies ~ Kaniwa

Hello everyone!  Thanks so much for the kind notes the last few weeks while my blog has been quiet and inconsistent.  I've been in a 'funk' lately that I really need to snap out of!  I have been trying and will continue to.  

One of the things I wanted to share with you today is one of the deals I found yesterday that I couldn't pass up!  The Kaniwa you see above!  It was the last box of its kind in the discount section of our local grocery store.  If memory serves - it was $2.52 - most Kaniwa I've seen over the last year has been between almost $5 and $9.  

I will go ahead and say this will be the post that will start back up the MidWeek Munchies Weekly linky, however, there will not be an actual linky this week, but, I would love for you to participate so PLEASE be sure to link in comments!

The difference between Kaniwa and Quinoa?

Kaniwa (pronounced ka-nyi-wa) is about half the size of quinoa but otherwise quite similar. It's high in protein, fiber, iron, and calcium; has a nutty, slightly sweet flavor; and comes from South America (primarily from the Andes Mountain region of Southern Peru and Bolivia). It's also gluten-free like quinoa and just as versatile; use it in salads, soups, and stir-fries, or eat it for breakfast.

One way that kaniwa is different from quinoa is that it doesn't contain the saponins that give quinoa that soapy, bitter flavor (the saponins get washed away when you rinse quinoa, which is why you really shouldn't skip that step). This makes kaniwa slightly less fussy and perhaps just a touch faster to prepare than quinoa. Otherwise the cooking process is pretty much the same, though it's common to toast kaniwa in a dry pan to bring out its flavor before cooking.

The reason this was on sale was because our former Bi Lo has officially turned into a Tops Market.  The redesign is under way and it's quite the switch-a-roo!  I LOVE it but a lot of people around here are complaining.  Sigh.

Gettin' My GRAINS On...

Last week Anna blogged about Menu Planning - something I am never very successful at - eventho I won't detail dish by dish of what I hope to do this week for meals - I figured a quasi-plan is better than NO PLAN, right?  So for my meal planning ideas for this week I jotted down a few things I hope to base my dishes and meals around and go from there.  Basically eating out of my pantry (or my freezer or fresh produce shelf).  This month's focus for me is Gettin' My Grains On...trying to get a variety of grains incorporated in to what I eat...even more than I usually do...that is!

Monday:

Breakfast - Raw Vegan Choco Mint Energy Bar
Lunch - Super Grains & Broccoli Bowl

Dinner - White Rice & Veggies (with Super Food Seasoning & Hot Sauce)

Snacks - Dried Tart Cherries

Tuesday:

Breakfast - Raw Granola

Lunch - Pumpkin Chips with Almond Butter, Dates, Freeze Dried Jack Fruit

Dinner - Kelp Noodles, Peas

Snacks - Corn Chips & Salsa (or pretzel)

Wednesday:

Breakfast - Banana/Peach Smoothie

Lunch - Leftover Veggies, Hemp Seeds, Kale Chips

Dinner - Quinoa, Brussel Sprouts

Snacks - Fruit Cup, Cashews

Thursday:

Breakfast - Raw Breakfast 'Crusts' (with nut butter or hummus)

Lunch - Leftover Quinoa (wrap or pocket), Salad

Dinner - Adzuki Pasta, Artichokes

Snacks - TBA Vegan Smoothie or Ice Cream

Friday:

Breakfast - Blueberry Smoothie, Raw Granola

Lunch - Brown Rice, Veggies, Salad

Dinner - Grits, Grain Toast with Nutritional Yeast, Veggie (and/or Tofu) Scramble

Snacks - Raw Jicama & Dip (or hummus) 

Please keep in mind this is not the ONLY foods I will be eating...there will be others...just some food goals for the week to try and make dishes out of and try and consume, really.  And since I hope to focus on the grains on I have on hand for this month do check back to see what I have planned next week, too!

Beans, Grains, & Veggies Dish

This is one of the dishes I came up with last week!  I was looking to incorporate the Rice & Lentil Medley from Whole Foods Market I bought a while back along with some fresh and frozen veggies I had on hand.  After I was half way thru with making it I noticed I had a little less than a cups-worth of Black Beans that I needed to use SOON so I threw those in, too!  Basically - this was a "Throw-In What You Have" Dish.

I started off with a frozen Mushroom and Onion mix in with a little bit of Coconut Oil.  I then threw in some red and green peppers, some corn, fresh broccoli, and frozen Carrots.  I added the Black beans towards the end since they were technically 'left-overs'.  I really didn't add much else to this - other than the ingredients you see - with the exception of the very little bit of Coconut Oil.  It turned out really well.  The Rice and Lentil Medley had White and Brown Rice, Red and Green Lentils.

Mason Jar Make Over - Part 2 - a Look at My Pantry!

Last year (or more) I posted a lengthy post about me totally re-doing my cabinets and cupboards with 90% Mason Jars...well...it's still that way but even more so.  So much so that I think I finally need to get some more Mason Jars!  This past weekend I took quite a bit of time to reorganize them and make them more tidy.  I'm not the most organized person BUT I have TRIED my best when it comes to my Pantry this past year.  This first photo is taking a look at my Spice Cupboard.  It goes about 4 to 5 rows deep and takes up a whole side.  I have a small spice spinner underneath this cupboard as well.  I usually buy in bulk and reuse old containers.  So when you see some of those old McCormick containers and off-brands most likely I have reused those time and time again.  Some of the clear glass containers that you see (with Cumin in it and Ginger Powder, for example) are from the same place I get my bulk spices from.  The local store I buy bulk from gets most of their items from Frontier Co-Op.

Here's another cupboard that I worked on over the weekend.  On the top row you can see some Spaghetti O looking dry pasta noodles, next is my vegan bread crumbs, Barley, then some Farro, and some Quinoa, and then Black Bean Noodles.  On the middle shelf are a lot of my sprouting seeds.  On the bottom one you can see most of my Wildtree Collection, some more sprouting items, some dry soup mixes, and Potato Flakes.

As you can see most everything is in Mason Jars.  When I was getting low I ended up using some old hard plastic ones I had not used in a while like when you see the one marked Quinoa, for example.

Here is a look at the section I have for some of my alternative flours and sweeteners.  These go about 3 deep so you can't really see everything but when you are standing in front of it it's easy to look at everything there.  What you can see on the top row is Bob's Red Mill's Gluten Free All Purpose Flour, Garden of Life Flax Seed with Fruit & Anti-Oxidants, more Flax Seeds, Arrowroot, a Granola from Bob's Red Mills, and what you can't see in the back are various alternative flours such as Soy, Garbanzo Bean, Spelt, etc.  On the bottom row you can see some of my alternative sweeteners - mostly from Wholesome Sweeteners.  Coconut Palm Sugar, Raw Cane Sugar, Sucanat, etc.  Behind that I have others such as Coconut Crystals from Coconut Secret and a few other things.

For this self you will see some of my husband's items that are not vegetarian/vegan but most of it is.  On the top row he has his sugar - regular/standard sugar, there are some raw honey's, Liquid Smoke, Steel Cut Oats, and overstock of flours.  On the middle row you can see Coconut Flour, my NuNaturals Stevia Collection, Bragg's including Nutritional Yeast and Liquid Aminos, followed by Chia Seeds, and Wholesome Sweeteners ZERO.  On the bottom shelf you can see our canned goods.  Most of which are from Aldi.  Yes...you can eye some Tuna which is NOT mine (I don't eat it) that's my husband's!  There are some canned beans and veggies but recently I found some fruit toppings and fillers from a discount store that happen to be vegan so I bought them and might play with those soon!

And FINALLY...the last section...mostly on the top shelf you can see our Coffee and Tea Cups along with some pills for hubby and the pets.  But...underneath that you will see some Pink Sea Salt which will last me a LIFE TIME as I hardly ever use salt but it was on sale a long time again and I bought it.  Next and in the back are various rices...standard, white rice, brown rice, long rice, multi-grain, black rice, purple rice, forbidden rice, Jasmine Rice...you name it!  You may even spot some Millet, Couscous, Polenta, Red lentils, Amaranth, grits, etc.

So that's a look at my updated pantry, cupboards, and cabinets!  I was going to include my Bento Box for today along with a recipe or two but I will put that in a separate post!  Questions of the Day...what do you see that are your favorites?  What haven't you tried!?  I'd love to hear!