5:30 Challenge
5 ingredients/30 minutes
Tonight’s solution:
Quinoa Soup
To make the meal:
Corn muffins
Midtown resident Jenny Randolph sent us this recipe she found on the blog “Cheap Healthy Good.”
“I love it and prepare it often, especially when I'm in the mood for comfort food. It's tasty, healthy and super easy," she told us. "I've made it for a sick friend, and she loved it, too.”
The quinoa we eat is a seed from a plant that’s a relative of spinach and Swiss chard. It’s a native of South America and one of the most complete sources of protein in the vegetable world. You can buy it from the bulk-food section of your local natural foods store or at the grocery store. It’s generally found in the section with rice and beans.
If you buy a package at the grocery store, you’ll have more than enough for this soup. Experiment with quinoa in recipes where you would use rice or couscous. For summer you can enjoy it in a cold grain salad, or it’s a great addition to other soups such as chili or posole.
Turn this into a meal by getting corn muffins or corn bread into the oven before you begin preparing the soup.
Take the 5:30 Challenge. If you have a great-tasting main-dish recipe that uses no more than five ingredients and can be made in 30 minutes or less, tell us. (Salt, pepper, water and oil for greasing a pan don’t need to be included in the ingredient count.) You can also suggest a side dish if it can be made within the same time. Send recipes with your name, address and phone number to fivethirty@ajc.com.
Quinoa Soup
Hands on: 10 minutes
Total time: 20 minutes
Serves: 4
Other garnishes could be lime wedges, avocado and chopped cilantro. If you let the soup sit, it will thicken as the quinoa continues to soak up liquid. To return it to a souplike state, add more broth.
1 (32-ounce) carton chicken or vegetable broth
1 cup quinoa
1 cup frozen corn kernels
1/3 cup salsa with cilantro, or to taste
1 large radish, sliced
In a large saucepan, heat broth over high heat until it comes to a boil, about 5 minutes. Add quinoa and reduce heat to medium-high. Cook 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until quinoa is tender. Add corn and salsa. When mixture returns to a simmer, turn off the heat and remove pot from burner. Taste for seasoning. Serve immediately, garnished with sliced radish.
Adapted from a recipe at www.cheaphealthygood.blogspot.com.
Per serving: 238 calories (percent of calories from fat, 15), 12 grams protein, 40 grams carbohydrates, 4 grams fiber, 4 grams fat (1 gram saturated), no cholesterol, 825 milligrams sodium.
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