Chez Darren Andrew

Tag Archives: Quick Recipe


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Quinoa, Black Bean and Sweet Corn Salad

For the Salad:

  • 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely diced
  • 1 small red onion, finely diced
  • 4 green onions, chopped finely
  • 1/2 a bunch of cilantro, chopped finely
  • 1 cup quinoa (2 cups cooked), cooked as per package instructions (in chicken or vegetable stock) and cooled
  • 2 cups of frozen sweet corn, blanched in hot water
  • 500 ml can of black beans , rinsed and drained
  • 1 red bell pepper, diced

For the Dressing:

  • 1/3 cup of apple cider vinegar
  • 1/3 cup of extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 tbsp dijon mustard
  • juice of 1/2 a lemon, or a tbsp of bottled lemon juice
  • 3 tbsp honey
  • 1 tsp of ground cumin
  • Salt and Black Pepper

Instructions:

Combine all dressing ingredients in a large bowl. Add the jalapeno, red onion, green onion, cilantro and let sit while quinoa cooks and cools. Cook the quinoa in chicken or vegetable stock as per the package instructions, and when it is ready cool it by either placing the pot in cold water and frequently string and changing the water out until cool. Another option would be to make extra the day before to have leftovers to make salads like this one, rice or other grain like barley or millet could be used instead of quinoa. Mix all reaming ingredients in the bowl to distribute the dressing evenly throughout the salad.

This salad is best if left to mingle in the fridge overnight, but it’s great right away also. Enjoy!

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Black bean and Corn Salad with Jalapeno Honey Lime Vinaigrette

Black bean and Corn Salad with Jalapeno Honey Lime Vinaigrette

  • 3 tbsp liquid honey
  • juice of 1 lime
  • 1/4 cup of apple cider vinegar
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • 1 jalapeno pepper, seeds and core removed, finely diced
  • 1/2 white onion, finely diced
  • 3 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 1/2 cup of cilantro leaves, lightly chopped
  • 1/3 cup of olive oil
  • 1 can of black beans rinsed and drained
  • 2 cups of peaches and cream corn kernels, fresh or frozen
  • 1/2 a red pepper, finely diced
  • 1/2  a zucchini, finely diced

In a large bowl, whisk together the honey, lime juice, cider vinegar, salt, pepper and cumin. Stir in the onion, garlic and jalapeno pepper and let sit for ten minutes, while you prepare the other ingredients. This will allow the strong nature of these ingredients to mellow out and infuse the dressing with their flavors. Add the olive oil and cilantro before stirring in the beans, corn, red pepper, and zucchini to the salad. Cover and refrigerate for two to four hours, or overnight for best results.


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Beer Marinades

Here is a triple hit of some of my recent adventures marinading meat while back on Vancouver Island. By marinading meat for several hours before grilling you get to infuse it with delicious flavour without much work at all, just whip up the marinade in a large zip top freezer bag, toss your meat into it and throw it in the refrigerator. Make sure to drain and discard all the marinade before bbqing and preheat the grill on high heat for at least 15 minutes to make sure you get a nice seer on your meat.   Another tip for perfect BBQ is giving your meat five minutes to rest after cooking, put your grilled meat on a plate and cover in a double layer of aluminum foil so the juices can calm down and redistribute throughout the meat. Enjoy the last days of summer with these BBQ marinades! Let me know what you think of them by commenting on this post!

Spicy Sesame Maple Marinade

  • 1/2 cup of soy sauce
  • 1/4 cup of maple syrup
  • 1 bottle of beer, Domestic Lager
  • 2 tbsp minced garlic
  • 2 tbsp pure toasted sesame oil
  • 2 tbsp sambal oelek
  • 2 tbsp mirin
  • Optional: 2 tbsp toasted sesame seeds for garnish.

Mix all ingredients in a large zip top bag. Add your meat and marinade 8 hours or overnight. Discard the marinade, grill your meat and sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds.

Honey Tequila Jalapeno Lime Marinade 

  • 1 shot of tequila, stay away from the blanco use the aged stuff for more flavour.
  • 1 bottle of beer, use a Mexican lager
  • juice and zest of one lime
  • 3 tbsp honey
  • 3 tbsp soy sauce
  • 2 jalapeno pepper sliced thinly
  • 2 tbsp minced garlic
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • Course ground black pepper

This one is a favourite of mine for grilled chicken. Mix the marinade ingredients in a large freezer bag. Add chicken and let marinade 4-6 hours.  Discard the marinade and grill the chicken. I like to leave some of the jalapeno on the surface of the chicken to char up on the grill.

Habanero Molasses Marinade

  • 2 thinly sliced Habanero peppers
  • 1 bottle of beer, domestic lager
  • 1/4 cup of soy sauce
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 tbsp minced garlic
  • 3 tbsp molasses
  • 3 tbsp ketchup
  • Course ground black pepper
  • Optional: Freshly chopped ginger root

Mix ingredients together and marinade meat for 8 hours. Discard marinade and cook meat as desired on the BBQ.


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Best Hummus EVER.

Hummus has been steadily gaining popularity in the food scene over the last several years. It’s a quick and healthy alternative to all the high fat dips on the market and it’s versatility is endless. I have even used it to replace mayonnaise in recipes! Use this recipe as a base and experiment from there, you can change it up to create different flavoured dips.

This method takes a little bit longer, but it isn’t very much work. It is definitely worth the effort. You can use rinsed and drained canned chick peas if you are in a rush.

Best Hummus EVER.

Adapted from Alton Brown’s Hummus For Real Recipe.

  • 2.25 litres of water
  • 2 cups dried chickpeas
  • 1/4 tsp baking soda

In a slow cooker add water, chickpeas, and baking soda. Cover and cook on high heat for 4 hours, or on low heat for 8. Drain and let cool.

  • 3 large cloves of garlic (Add less if you don’t like garlic, Add more if you do!)
  • 1 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/4 cup of lemon juice
  • 1/4 cup of water
  • 1/3 cup of tahini
  • 1/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil

In the bowl of a food processor, blitz the garlic with the salt for 10 seconds. Add the cooked chickpeas and process for 20 seconds. Scrape the sides of the bowl down and add the lemon juice and water. Process for 20 more seconds. Scrape the sides of the down down add the tahini. Process for 20 more seconds. Turn the processor on and gradually add the olive oil.

Some extras you might like to add in, either stir them in or pulse 5 times!

  • 1/4 tsp cumin and orange zest
  • Roasted Garlic
  • diced Roasted Red Peppers
  • Chipotle puree and fresh cilantro
  • diced Black Katamala olives and 2 tbs feta cheese
  • Sun-dried tomatoes and fresh basil
  • 3 tbs Pesto

What is your favourite flavour of hummus and how do you like to eat it?

Comments are always welcome!


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Macaroni Salad

Macaroni Salad

Dressing

  • 3/4 cup of Mayonnaise (I use Hellman’s  1/2 Fat)
  • 1/4 cup white vinegar
  • 1/4 cup white sugar
  • 1 tbs Dijon Mustard
  • dash of hot sauce
  • 2 shallots, finely diced
  • 1 clove of garlic, minced
  • 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely diced
  • 1 dill pickle, finely diced
  • Black Pepper

Whisk all ingredients in a large bowl, until sugar is dissolved and dressing is light and creamy.

Salad

  • 1 box (375 g) of whole wheat elbow macaroni, boiled and drained
  • 2 medium carrots
  • 2 stalks of celery
  • 1/4 red pepper
  • 1/4 yellow pepper
  • 1 small zucchini
  • 8 radishes
  • 1 green onion

Add pasta to the dressing, stir and set aside. Dice all veg into pieces about the size of a cooked macaroni noodle. If you decide to use a different kind of pasta, adjust the size of your veg accordingly. Mix together and refrigerate to let the flavors combine. Add any veg you have to this recipe, some chopped cabbage or broccoli would be great! You can even add rinsed drained canned chickpeas to give it a protein kick!


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Quinoa and Beetroot Salad with Walnuts and Chevre


Quinoa and Beetroot Salad with Walnuts and Chevre

1 cup uncooked Quinoa
1 each medium/large golden and red beetroot
1/2 red onion, finely diced
1/2 cup walnuts, lightly toasted
1 cup green beans, blanched and french cut
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp grainy mustard
1/2 a bunch of Freshly chopped parsley
Chevre frais
Salt and Pepper

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees fahrenheit. Wash and trim the beetroot and place them in an aluminum packet, sealed up on a baking tray, in the oven for about an hour. Remove from the oven and open packets so that the beets can thoroughly cool before peeling them with the backside of a spoon and dicing into quarter inch pieces. Place a pot on the stove with two cups of lightly seasoned water, or vegetable stock, and add quinoa. Bring to the boil, reduce the heat to low, cover with the lid until all the moisture absorbs, 15-20 minutes. Meanwhile add onions and vinegar to another pot on medium heat and reduce the liquid by half. At this point add a good tablespoon of grainy mustard and olive oil and salt and pepper. Mix well until the mixture emulsifiers. To assemble the salad first add the cooled quinoa to a large bowl, gently toss in the beets, sweet onion vinegar dressing, then the green beans, parsley and walnuts. To serve, add some crumbled chevre to the salad.

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