Baked Scallop & Penne Primavera - Gluten Free & Dairy Free

Sunday night we came back from Boston and needed to have dinner. We did not have a co-op box pickup this weekend so we have a few items from last week still lying around. I also have a few things starting to ripen in my garden. After poking around the fridge I decided to make a hearty meal with some of the veggies I had in there. All ingredients are organic whenever possible.

Baked Scallop & Penne Primavera - Gluten Free & Dairy Free

• 1Tbsp olive oil
• 2 small eggplants; peeled and diced
• 1 yellow onion; diced
• 1 small zucchini; diced
• 1/2 bunch of kale; stems removed and chopped
• 1 28 oz can of crushed tomatoes with basil
• 3/4 cup frozen green peas
• 1 small jalapeno; finely chopped
• 1/2 cup - 1 cup fresh basil; chopped
• 1/4 cup fresh parsley; chopped
• 2 Tbsp died oregano
• Ground pepper to taste
• 1 cubanelle pepper; diced
• 8 large sea scallops; quartered
• 1 box gluten free penne (I used quinoa pasta)
• 1 package of Daiya Foods Mozzarella

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Heat oil in a large pan or dutch oven, add onions and cook until soft. Add eggplant and zucchini to pan and pook for 8 - 10 minutes. Add additional oil to pan if desired. 

Meanwhile start your pasta water boiling.

Once the eggplant appears to be cooked add the jalapeno to the pot and let cook for about 2 minutes. Then add the kale to the pot and let cook. After 3-5 minutes add the can of crushed tomatoes. Use about a 1/4 cup of water to rinse out your can and dump that into the pot too. Bring up to a simmer and add the peas. Cook everything for about 2 minutes, until the peas get warm. 

By now your water should be boiling and you should add your pasta to the water and cook as per the directions on the box.

Add the oregano, basil, parsley and pepper to the tomato mixture.  If needed add some pasta water to help thicken the sauce. Bring to a boil.

Reduce to a simmer and add cubanelle pepper and sea scallops. Cook for about 3 minutes.

Add drained pasta to the pan and stir to coat the pasta.

Lightly oil a 9" x 13" pan and fill the pan with the tomato and pasta. Spread the 'cheese' on top and bake for 20 minutes or until the 'cheese' is melted.

Let rest for 5 minutes so it is easier to cut. I got 6 pieces out of the 9" x 13" pan. I am sure if you serve with a salad the portions could have been smaller.

Enjoy!

A Starting Place (Sweet Potato Quinoa Cakes)

This is my first post ever; so bear with me!

We had our HUGE annual party this weekend. It was a success! Since I am recently dairy and gluten free I decided to make some sweet potato quinoa cakes for the party. I got A LOT of requests for the recipe so I decided to start this blog to share recipes that I come up with. Because I am Garlic-Free, Soy-Free, Gluten-Free and Dairy-Free most recipes I find on the interwebs are not good for me to follow directly because they contain at least something I cannot have. So I use them as a jumping off point and change them to meet my needs and tastes. I also am terrible about measuring any spices I put into something, so this will be an interesting ride.

My jumping off point for this recipe was from The Naked Kitchen. But she had so many thing in there that I couldn't eat so I changed it up a little and made it a little simpler.

Sweet Potato Quinoa Cakes

• 1 Can Organic Black Beans (drained and rinsed)
• 3 Organic Sweet Potatoes, peeled and diced into large cubes (I used 2 large and 1 small)
• 1 Cup Organic Quinoa (I used white)
• 2 Cup Filtered Water or Vegetable broth
• 3/4 Cup Organic Corn (Fresh or defrosted frozen)
• 1/4 Cup or 1/2 Large Red Organic Onion Finely Chopped (Use whatever your taste level is)
• 1/3 Cup Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free All-Purpose Baking Flour
• 2 Heaping Tbsp Raw Sunflower Seeds
• 1 tsp Cumin
• 1/4 tsp Cayenne Pepper
• 1/2 tsp Paprika 
• 1/2 tsp Pride of Malabar Black Pepper (Use whatever you have. I just happen to love this pepper)
• A dash of hot sauce
• Optional: 1 Carrot - Grated
• Olive Oil for cooking

Cook Sweet Potato cubes in water until tender for 20 - 30 minutes. When finished drain and let cool

Meanwhile, add 1 cup quinoa and 2 cups water or broth to a small pot. Bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, cover and cook for 10 minutes. If there is water left in the bottom after 10 minutes turn off the heat and leave the cover on the quinoa will absorb the rest of the water as it cools. For this recipe we want the quinoa to be a little stickier than if we were just making quinoa alone. Let the Quinoa cool too.

After you have drained and rinsed the black beans add 1/2 to a large mixing bowl. Use a fork to mash the beans in the bowl. Use a fork to crush but nor puree the Sweet Potatoes cubes too (they don't have to be cold just cool enough to handle). Depending on how much quinoa you want in your burgers add between 3/4 cup and 1 cup of cooked Quinoa to the mashed Black Beans. Then add Sweet Potaotes and remaining ingredients. 

Use your hands to form them into patties.

Preheat a nonstick frying pan (or I used a large griddle) and add a little oil to aid in the browning.

Place each patty onto the griddle and use your spatula to flatten out a little so that your patties are touching as much surface as possible. Once browned flip and brown on the other side. Approximately 10 minutes total. But give them as much time as you think they need. I only browned them on both sides because I made them on Friday with the intent to put them on the grill the next day. 

On Saturday I put the cold refrigerated patties on aluminum foil on the top rack of the grill. I did not remember to oil the foil so one side stuck! Leave them on until warm and enjoy!

I ate mine topped with homemade quacamole. It was delish!


Thanks for reading.