COOKIN' UP SOME NEW RECIPES

Odel is playing poker in the clubhouse, Luna is sleeping after being combed and fed, and I gained an hour today when we crossed from Texas (CDT) into New Mexico (MDT)... so I have time to post a couple of yummy recipes tonight.

For the first one, Quinoa and Black Bean Salad with Smoky Lime Dressing, you can thank my friend Judy Ashford, who knows I like quinoa. Several weeks ago, she sent me a link to a food blog called FamilyStyle Food - specifically, to this recipe.

Oh, what a dilemna. I love to try new quinoa recipes, but I avoid recipes that use chipotle peppers in adobo sauce. Why? Because every recipe calls for ONE pepper, and a can has about 6, or 8 maybe, all in a thick, messy red sauce.

Do I use one, then toss the rest?? Oh, no, too wasteful... so I keep a little baggie or recycled jar of messy red chipotles in the refrigerator until I overcome my guilt and toss 'em several months later.

Still, the recipe continued to tempt me until I couldn't resist. We had the salad for dinner tonight (along with sea bass in Salsa Veracruzana , a recipe I posted previously) and, believe me, it is worth storing a bag of leftover chipotles for... as I am doing at this very hour. Give it a try - the dressing is totally delicious!

A crock-pot ("slow cooker" in gourmet) is an appliance incredibly well suited to the RV'ing life. In winter, it warms us up; in summer, we plug it in outside so we stay cool. It cooks while we are hiking, shopping, or driving (I recently made a pot of southern-style greens with white beans and a smoked turkey leg as we drove from one campground to the next). I wouldn't be without it.

This recipe for Southwest Cornbread Pudding (thanks, Jo, for correcting my link!) came from volume II of The Gourmet Slow Cooker, one of several crock-pot cookbooks I carry around. Some of the recipes in this book take extra effort - for this one, you make a batch of cornbread first - but it's worth it. Another oddity of this recipe: it cooks for just 3 1/2 or 4 hours, so you can't get it started then leave for the day.

It goes well with grilled chicken, provides vegetarians with a yummy and filling main course (while we omnivores eat it as a side to the grilled chicken), and the leftovers make a delicous breakfast warmed for a couple of minutes in the microwave. It makes a HUGE batch, a very full pot.

And, one more recipe note: I have become addicted to the Homemade Multigrain Biscuits, which would more accurately be called Homemade Multigrain Scones - they are shaped and baked in the traditional scone manner and are way too crumbly to split like a biscuit. When my dad complained about that, I told him we bake the biscuits, flip 'em over, and spread sugarless jam on the flat side. I think he has adopted that method now, too.

I have been making the "mix" with oat flour in place of the kamut or spelt flour (an attempt at cholesterol control). I love that the mix can be pre-made; a few minutes of effort in the morning and we have fresh, hot "biscuits" for breakfast.

Enjoy!