Quinoa Pilaf from Eat Tweet!

Here's the recipe for today:

Quinoa Pilaf

Brwn1/3c onion&carrot/T buttr&oil;  +t garlic/1/2t s+p&turmeric/c quinoa 2 m. Boil + 2c h2o. Cvr,simmr15m.Fluff+2T cilantro&mint.

That, my friends, is a twitter recipe. Maureen Evans (@cookbook) has published Eat Tweet, a twitter cookbook. Over 1,000 recipes are written in 140 characters or less. Of course, it does take a bit of decoding. 

When I heard about this book, I was incredibly excited to check out a combination of a fairly new technology and a cookbook! I bought it as sort of a novelty and didn't expect a whole hell of a lot from a recipe that took less space to communicate than a summary news lead. But I was pleasantly surprised. This quinoa pilaf is the first thing I've made from the book and it is seriously delicious. I've written the recipe in my usual format, with my own adaptations below. Besides making a delicious dinner, this is a one pot meal. And, you know how I love a one pot meal.

Quinoa Pilaf

Adapted from Eat Tweet by Alexandra Rogers

Ingredients

2 Tablespoons Sunflower Oil (or vegetable oil, or a combination of butter and olive oil)

1/3 c. onion, medium diced

2/3 cup carrots, sliced into 1/2" thin pieces

1 teaspoon freshly minced garlic

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon turmeric

1 cup quinoa*

2 cups water

2 Tablespoons fresh mint, minced

2 Tablespoons fresh cilantro, minced

Recipe

Heat oil in a medium saucepan. Once the oil is hot (it should sizzle when a drop of water touches the pan--it is too hot if a drop of water causes the oil to pop)--add the onions and carrots. Let cook, stirring only once or twice, until the onions are tender and slightly brown (about 5-6 minutes). Add garlic, salt, pepper, turmeric and quinoa and let cook for two minutes, stirring only enough to coat the quinoa with the mixture in the pot. Add 2 cups water and bring to a boil. Once boiling, bring down to a simmer and simmer, covered, for 15 minutes or until water is fully absorbed. Add mint and cilantro, fluff with a fork and serve. Serves 4.

*Quinoa is a slightly nutty tasting grain that is gluten-free and good for you! It can often be found in the health food aisle at your grocery store.