Skinny Bitch Tuesdays: Quinoa Pilaf with Mushrooms and Caramelized Onions

Welcome to Skinny Bitch Tuesdays! I’m so excited to be teaming up with Claire, Kelly, Michelle, and Jennifer to cook our way through the kick-ass healthy cookbook, Skinny Bitch by Kim Barnouin! When Claire first contacted me to ask if I wanted to be a part of this awesome group, it was an easy answer! I’ve been wanting to get the book and this was the perfect opportunity!

We will be cooking a recipe from the Skinny Bitch cookbook twice every month. One of the great things about our little group is that we can change up the recipes however we want so you can plan to see different takes on each recipe we make out of the book!

One thing to note about Skinny Bitch is that the recipes are vegan, which I have no issues with, but I am not personally a vegan. I will definitely make some of the recipes vegan as written in the book, but some of them might be changed up a bit. Especially if I am making them for my sweet, but picky husband! :)

Our first recipe is the Wild Rice Pilaf with Pine Nuts, Currants, and Caramelized Onions. While I love rice, I don’t eat it too often as quinoa is my grain of choice so the first thing I swapped was the quinoa for the rice. One great thing about this swap is that it cuts a lot of prep time as rice takes longer to cook than quinoa. I also added sauteed mushrooms and left out the currants as I didn’t really want this to be sweet. If you want a more wild rice look, try using tricolor quinoa!

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Yield: 6 servings

Quinoa Pilaf with Mushrooms and Caramelized Onions

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes

Total Time 35 minutes

This easy quinoa pilaf is the perfect side dish and lower carb alternative to rice.

Ingredients

• 1 cup quinoa
• 2 cups chicken or vegetable broth
• 2 tbs. extra virgin olive oil
• 1 small onion, diced
• 1 cup mushrooms, roughly chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/3 cup pine nus, toasted
• 2 tbs. parsley, chopped
• salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

1. In a saucepan, heat the broth and quinoa on medium heat. Bring to a boil, and then lower the heat to a simmer, cover, and cook for about 15 minutes until the broth is absorbed and the quinoa is cooked.
2. While the quinoa is cooking, heat the olive oil in a sautee pan on medium high heat. Add the onions and mushrooms and cook for about 5 minutes. Lower the heat to medium heat and add the garlic. Cook for another 30 seconds or so and pour the mixture into a bowl.
3. In a large bowl, add the cooked quinoa and mushroom and onion mixture. Toss to combine. Stir in the toasted pine nuts and parsley. Add salt and pepper to taste, if needed. Serve.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

6

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 192Total Fat: 11gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 8gCholesterol: 42mgSodium: 196mgCarbohydrates: 10gFiber: 2gSugar: 2gProtein: 13g

Don’t forget to check out the posts from the other Skinny Bitch gals!

Claire of The Realistic Nutritionist

Jennifer of Peanut Butter and Peppers

Michelle of The Healthy Bites

Related posts:

Skinny Bitch Tuesdays: Potato Goat Cheese Bake Skinny Bitch Tuesdays: Chive and Dill Biscuits Skinny Bitch Tuesdays: Veggie Pot Pies Skinny Bitch Tuesdays: Coconut Macaroons