Crop Rotation in New Mexico, and a Quinoa Pilaf

We stayed at Percha Dam State Park along the Rio Grande River in southern New Mexico again last week. Last October when we visited there, the surrounding fields were full of red chile pods awaiting harvest. Now, in May, those same fields were planted with onions, with many acres of alfalfa interspersed for healthy crop rotation. If the Midwest is the breadbasket of the world, this valley is surely the salsa bowl of the world.

I made a delicious, though unrelated, dish in the camper while here. I sauteed sliced onions, garlic, sliced red bell pepper, and strips of chicken breast in olive oil in a skillet. I added 1/2 cup quinoa and stirred until lightly toasted, then added a cup of chicken bouillon, covered the pan, and simmered until the quinoa was tender and the liquid absorbed--about 20 minutes, I think.

Lamb Meatballs and Red Quinoa

This was a reality-based menu: no ideal recipes, just making a meal of what was on hand.

I had a pound of frozen ground lamb, so that meant I should go in a Middle Eastern direction. Claudia Roden's New Book of Middle Eastern Food listed a recipe for lamb meatballs baked in tomato sauce, very interesting because the lamb was bound with ground onion rather than breadcrumbs. They were light and flavorful, baked rather than fried. The tomato sauce was mixed raw and poured over the meatballs and baked another half hour, so the preparation was wonderfully simple.

I roasted some vegetables, including a fennel bulb, and mixed in a lot of fresh herbs at the end.

The red quinoa was exciting. Russell served this to us, and it is so much more interesting than the pale tan variety I've seen up until now. It had a little more texture, too.

Gluten-Free Adventures

Here's a picture of Mock Rye Bread--actually I did put a little rye flour in there--it was flavorful but more like cake than bread. Fine for toast, bad for a sandwich. I found that my Bread Lover's Bread Machine Cookbook by Beth Hensperger had a whole chapter on gluten-free breads.

Tonight I made Quinoa Tabulli, quite a success. Dad provided parsley and green onions from the garden.