Reusable snack/sandwich bags

My latest project:  Reusable sandwich/snack/food bags.

This one is large enough to put in a wrap, plus a smaller bag with celery sticks or baby carrots.
I made the seams on the outside on this one, made matching bias fabric to cover the seams.  This one is also lined with water proof fabric.  Just wipe clean and reuse!
No more plastic sandwich bags for us! 
Just use, wash and reuse!

Quinoa

What's New and Beneficial About Quinoa

• The Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has officially declared that the year 2013 be recognized as "The International Year of the Quinoa." Proposed by the government of Bolivia and receiving strong support from many Central and South American countries, quinoa has now been singled out by the FAO as a food with "high nutritive value," impressive biodiversity, and an important role to play in the achievement of food security worldwide. We realize that quinoa remains unfamiliar to many people, especially in the practical sense of cooking and recipes. But we hope that situation will change, given the remarkable nature of this easily-prepared, nutrient-rich food.
• Researchers have recently taken a close look at certain antioxidant phytonutrients in quinoa, and two flavonoid—quercetin and kaempferol—are now known to be provided by quinoa in especially concentrated amounts. In fact, the concentration of these two flavonoids in quinoa can sometimes be greater than their concentration in high-flavonoid berries like cranberry or lingonberry.
• Recent studies are providing us with a greatly expanded list of anti-inflammatory phytonutrients in quinoa. This unique combination of anti-inflammatory compounds in quinoa may be the key to understanding preliminary animal studies that show decreased risk of inflammation-related problems (including obesity) when animals are fed quinoa on a daily basis. The list of anti-inflammatory phytonutrients in quinoa is now known to include: polysaccharides like arabinans and rhamnogalacturonans; hydroxycinnamic and hydroxybenzoic acids; flavonoids like quercetin and kaempferol; and saponins including molecules derived from oleanic acid, hederagenin and serjanic acid. Small amounts of the anti-inflammatory omega-3 fatty acid, alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), are also provided by quinoa.

re-posted in part from http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?dbid=142&tname=foodspice

Black Bean Burgers

I have had a few request for my Black Bean Burgers....so here goes.
Adjust recipe to your taste.  I like mine a little spicy!
I roast garlic and peppers in the oven and then divide them to use in several dishes throughout the week.

1/2 cup cooked Quinoa (pronounced Keenwaa).  Cooked rice can be substituted.
1 can black beans
Roasted green, red & yellow bell peppers ( I use about 1/4 cup)
1/2 cup sauteed shredded carrots, chopped
2 cloves roasted garlic
2 eggs
1 tbs chili powder
1 tbs gound cumin
1/2 bread crumbs

I use a hand potatoe masher to mash the black beans but they can also be put in the food processor.
In food processor pulse once or twice the roasted peppers, garlic.  Add mixture to black beans. 
Add eggs to mixture and mix well.
Add enough bread crumbs and Quinoa to make a firm textured patty.
Fry patties using a teaspoon coconut oil.

Spicy Quacamole topping
1 small avacodo
1/4 cup Garbonzo beans (canned or cooked)
juice of 1/2 lemon
1 1/2 tbs jarred jalapenoes with 1/2 tsp jalapeno juice
Process in food processor until desired smoothness

top cooked Black Bean Burger with Spicy Quacamole sauce, some sauteed carrots
Soooo Good!