I love it when a plan comes together.
Like when I have things organized enough to have meat thawed or veggies harvested or something soaked and prepared ahead of time so that when it gets to be dinner time I’m not stressing about what to cook and how fast can I get it on the table.
But not every day is like that.
Sometimes. Not always. Sometimes, the clock strikes 6:35 pm and I look around and realize that I have about 10 minutes before the kiddos will revolt and I’ve got to work fast to avoid the mayhem.
Those are the days I’m happy we have quinoa in the cupboard. Eggs in the fridge. And spinach. And butter.
Because this isn’t a fancy dish.
But it’s tasty.
And nourishing (quinoa is a digestible complete protein, spinach is packed with phytonutrients and minerals, pastured butter, which is just better for you all around, and farm fresh eggs are … well … farm fresh eggs).
The kiddos like it.
And it’s super easy to whip up in less than 25 minutes.
Woohoo!
INGREDIENTS:
- 1 teaspoon pastured butter
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic (minced)
- 1 cup uncooked quinoa (rinsed … Ideally, this would actually be soaked and rinsed, but I don’t always have the forethought to have quinoa pre-soaked for dinner)
- 2 cups filtered water
- 2 eggs
- 1 big handful of raw baby spinach
- sea salt & black pepper (to taste)
DIRECTIONS:
In a medium saucepan, heat the olive oil and butter. Add the garlic and sauté until translucent. Add the quinoa and coat with the garlic-butter-oil before adding the water.
Bring the water to a rolling boil. Reduce the heat to simmer and cover for 15-20 minutes (until all the water is evaporated or absorbed by the quinoa … just like rice).
At this point, I use a wooden spatula to clear a spot on the bottom of the saucepan and crack the eggs into the pot and begin stirring immediately. Cooking the egg in the hot quinoa. When the egg is cooked through, I add a big handful of spinach and a little salt, stir to combine, remove from the heat and cover for about 2 minutes to wilt the spinach.
A little fresh cracked pepper after it’s on the serving dish, and there you have it.
This also makes a great side dish. Or the base of a tasty “bowl” that can be topped with all manor of sautéed or grilled veggies, meat, poultry or fish. Leave out the egg and butter if you’re looking for a Vegan option and just pile high with veggies (like broccolini, snap peas, carrots, sweet potatoes, etc.)
Fast food at it’s finest
