What would you feed me…Prudy?

My first guest blogger in this new series is the lovely Prudy from Butter, Basil and Breadcrumbs ; I think I met Prudy at one of Angie’s now famous Fiesta Friday blog parties, I do know that we got to know each other properly when we co hosted one of the fiestas together (it’s a great way to meet new friends).

How do I describe Prudy to those of you who don’t already know her? I don’t know if there are sufficient superlatives in my vocabulary! Lovely…gorgeous…supportive…encouraging…friendly…funny…FABULOUS?! She is all these and more. Her blog is full of great recipes and photos and each post tells a hilarious story from her own life, I guarantee Prudy will make you laugh..and make you want to eat her food!

So, what did she make for me…have a look…

Dinner for Elaine
Beans in Sauce over Quinoa

I’m so happy to be doing a guest post for Elaine’s brilliant brain child “What Would You Feed Me, If I Came to Dinner?”… More than happy… honored…to be the first guest post…Truly.

But… I have to admit that I was quite surprised when she asked me, because for those of you who know me… well… you know that I’m a girl who keeps bacon grease in her refrigerator, and I’m one to enjoy a thick steak, followed by a cupcake topped with thick icing..

So when she asked me if I was up to the challenge of a vegetarian, gluten free,healthy, tasty dish… of course, my first response was Yes! Of course I’d be thrilled to do a guest post for this fun theme! But then, I started to panic a little… I hoped that I could meet Elaine’s expectations. I love her..and wouldn’t want her to be disappointed, you know? But as I sat there thinking about it, I thought “You can do this Prudence.. just act as if Elaine was really coming to the house for dinner..” because I would LOVE to have her over for dinner.. and there is no doubt that I would prepare a the kind of meal that she loves. I know that there would be a lot of laughter and happiness during that visit!

It didn’t take me long to know what I would serve… green beans in sauce. It was one of my favorites at our family parties as I was growing up.. I believe that it was my Aunt Babe (her name was Prudence too).. who was in charge of that particular dish. Now, let me just say that these don’t even come close to Aunt Babe’s green beans, but from experience, I knew that green beans in sauce were a winning combination.

Keeping it in an Italian type theme, I wanted to serve them over something…and when I asked Elaine if rice could be used, she said yes, but she prefers quinoa.

Quinoa.
Oh man.
I’ve never cooked quinoa, let alone eaten it.

But, she’s my guest for dinner… and I need to make something that would please her. So, quinoa it would be. Just for the record, it is now going to be a staple in my pantry. Love it!! I don’t know what took me so long to try it..honestly. I sautéed a couple of cloves of garlic in a little olive oil, and then cooked it according to the directions on the jar. Delicious!

And then finally, to bring a little meatiness to the meal, I sautéed some mushrooms which brought a deep earthy finish to the dish. I topped it off with some shaved parmesan cheese…and after one taste, I knew that my dear friend would be pleased if she came to my house for dinner.

Dinner is ready Elaine… what time shall I expect you?
I truly enjoyed this meal with you in mind…

Thank you so much, my lovely friend, for giving me this wonderful honor to be your first guest post.. it means the world to me. YOU mean the world to me. I had a wonderful time, and hope that someday you’ll be sitting at my table for real.

Beans in Sauce Over Quinoa

1/2 pound mix of fresh green and wax beans, trimmed
1 pint grape tomatoes, quartered
2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
1 small onion, chopped
1 tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

1 cup quinoa, uncooked
2 cups water
1 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
1/2 tsp salt

8 oz Baby bella mushrooms, or button mushrooms
Salt and pepper to taste

Shaved parmesan

In a small frying pan, saute the onion, and 2 cloves garlic in 1 tbsp olive oil until the onions are translucent. Add the green and wax beans, and saute for about five minutes. Remove the beans and set aside on a plate.

Add the tomatoes to the garlic and onion mixture and cook until the tomatoes are softened, and the sauce has thickened. Season with salt and pepper to your desired taste. Add the sauce to a small food processor, and pulse a few times to break up the tomatoes. Set aside.

In the same frying pan, add the mushroom caps. I found out at a cooking class about two years ago, that you don’t really need any oil to cook mushrooms. They come out perfectly if you toss them into a frying pan, and slowly let them cook in their own juices, maybe five minutes…or until the juices have evaporated, and the mushrooms have browned nicely. You’ll never miss the oil! Salt and pepper to taste. Remove the mushrooms to a plate, and set aside.

In a small saucepan, saute the garlic in the 1 tbsp olive oil until translucent, and add two cups water. Bring to a boil. Lower the heat, and add the quinoa. Cook, covered, for about 15 minutes, or until the water has been absorbed. Remove from heat.

Add the sauce and the green beans back to the frying pan, and heat through, coating the beans with sauce. There will be extra sauce to spoon over the beans while layering the dish.

Beginning with the quinoa, layer the quinoa on a plate. Place 1/2 of the bean / sauce mixture on top of the quinoa. Spoon more sauce over the beans. Add 1/2 half of the mushrooms over the sauce, and top with shaved parmesan.

Serve immediately…and enjoy!

Thank you SOOOOO much Prudy, this looks fabulous and is definitely something I would love to eat, and I’m so glad that during the process you have found a new food to enjoy too!! Thank you sweetheart xxx (booking my flight now!!)