Roasted veggie and quinoa salad

Ingredients

• 1 cup quinoa, well rinsed
• 2 cups chicken stock (plus additional for steaming greens)
• Fresh basil or other herbs, finely diced

• 1 red bell pepper, cut into quarters
• 1 yellow summer squash, sliced in half (remove seeds if you prefer)
• 1 large portabello mushroom, sliced into large strips
• 1/4-1/2 (depending on size) sweet onion, cut into rings
• 1-2 Roma tomatoes, sliced in half
• 2 ears corn, cooked and cut off cobb
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 cup olive oil (plus extra for greens)
• pepper

• 8 cups mustard greens, rinsed and cut into large pieces
• 1/4 cup chicken stock
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 Tablespoon olive oil

Preparation

1. Cook quinoa according to package directions, substituting chicken stock for water. Stir in basil or additional herbs after cooking.
2. In a large saucepan, saute garlic in 1 Tablespoon of olive oil until brown, but not burnt (You will have to watch closely). Add 1/4 cup of chicken stock to pot and top with greens. Cover and let steam for 25 minutes, or until greens are bright in color and tender.
3. Toss remaining ingredients in a large pan until evenly coated with oil and vinegar. Spread out vegetables in a single layer. Place under broiler until veggies start to char. Turn once to darken both sides. As vegetables finish you may need to remove some from the pan before others. Chop cooked vegetables into smaller pieces.
4. Layer dish starting with mustard greens, then quinoa, followed by vegetables. You may choose to add liquid from the vegetable pan or additional olive oil if dish is dry.

Barley salad

Do you like potlucks? Of course you do, who doesn't. Do you like Reser's salads? Of course you don't, NO one does! Then stop buying gross "picnic salads" from Safeway and start making delicious summer salads with veggies and grains.

Ingredients
Salad:

• 1 cup uncooked barley
• 1 1/2 cups frozen corn (or about 3 ears fresh corn)
• 1 red bell pepper, cut into small strips
• 1 green bell pepper, diced
• 1/2 cup sliced green onions

Dressing:

• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1/2 cup lemon juice
• 1/4 cup cilantro
• Salt and pepper

Directions

1. Cook barley according to package directions. Drain and rinse with cold water.
2. In a large bowl, mix barley, corn, peppers, and onion.
3. Mix dressing ingredients and pour over salad. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Corn and Chili Chowder

Some guy at the farmer's market was roasting freshly picked peppers over a fire pit. They smelled so delicious that we bought a whole bag. Crazy good cooking ensued. This soup is a little spicy and gets hotter the longer it sits in the fridge. Leave the skin on the potatoes for added iron.

Ingredients:
2 ears sweet corn
1 1/2 cups low sodium chicken or vegetable broth
1 1/2 cups cream or half and half
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 onion, diced
1/2 lb. potatoes, diced
2 roasted, peeled and seeded green chilies
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Boil corn. Cut kernels off the cob and set aside. In a large soup pot, combine broth, cream, and corn cobs. Simmer for 5 minutes over medium heat. Remove cobs.

Saute onion in oil until soft. Add onion, potatoes, and roasted chilies to cream mixture. Cook until potatoes are tender. Add corn kernels and cook for 5 more minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Green Chili and Corn Quesadilla

This is way basic, but also tasty.

Ingredients:
1 ear corn
1 roasted, peeled, and seeded poblano
1 cup shredded Mexican blend cheeses
4 flour tortillas

Directions:
Boil corn in water for 5 minutes or until tender. Cut corn off of ear. Chop chili into small pieces and mix with corn. Spoon corn and chili mixture onto one tortilla, top with half of cheese and remaining tortilla. Cook until golden brown.