Quinoa, Adzuki and Mung Bean Veggie Medley

Ingredients:

2 cups quinoa cooked (1 cup uncooked)

½ cup adzuki beans soaked and cooked (1/4 cup uncooked)

½ cup mung beans soaked and cooked (1/4 cup uncooked)

½ cup chickpeas soaked and cooked (1/4 cup uncooked)

1 small red onion diced

2 leaves of kale chopped

¼ cup of flat leaf parsley

2 cloves garlic minced

2 tbs coconut oil (or olive oil)

1 tbs spoon of maple syrup

¼ cup of cranberries

Cayenne pepper to taste

Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

The hard part – Prepping the beans:

1. Chickpeas: Place uncooked chickpeas in a sealed container with double the amount of cold water overnight/or before going to work, leaving on the counter. Once the 8-12 hours are up, the beans will have soaked up most of the water, but you are not done yet. Strain any remaining water, and transfer soaked chickpeas to a large cooking pot. Bring to a boil, and reduce to a simmer with the lid on for approx. 30mins to 1 hour (or until the desired texture is reached).
2.  Adzuki/Mung Beans: The same instructions applies to these beans as with chickpeas, with the exception that the time to simmer will a little less since they are smaller beans. However, check the consistency of the bean before removing. They should still be firm, but not hard to chew.
3.  Quinoa: Rinse 1 cup of quinoa in a strainer and transfer to a pot. Add two cups of water to the pot, bring to a boil, and reduce to a simmer, with the lid slightly off. Simmer for approx. 15-20 minutes until the quinoa has soaked up all the water. Fluff with a fork. This can be done either when you are prepping the beans, or before you start cooking your meal (see ‘The easy part’ below).

The easy part:

1. Dice onion, chop kale and parsley, and mince garlic (or just cut it as small as you can).
2.  Add oil to the frying pan at a medium heat, and once heated, add in diced onions. Sautee until slightly brown.
3. Add in garlic and cook until garlic is slightly brown.
4.  Add in kale and parsley until slightly wilted.
5. Add in cooked mung beans, adzuki beans, quinoa and chickpeas and mix in with onion mixture.
6. Once mixed, add in cranberries, maple syrup, cayenne pepper, and salt and pepper. Mix thoroughly.
7. If the pot is too dry at the bottom, add a tablespoon of water to deglaze and cook until water is evaporated.
8. Adjust seasoning to taste and serve!

 Suggestions

- Chickpeas/Adzuki Beans/Mung Beans – Soak/cook more beans than needed for this recipe. You can store them in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 5 days. Add them to salads and other various dishes for an extra kick of protein. 

- Quinoa: You can also cook more than you need and leave it in the fridge for up to a week for other recipes.

- Canned beans – You can use canned beans if you wish, however, I recommend against it because in most cans of chickpeas, they contain a preservative called Disodium EDTA which is used to prevent air from spoiling food and cosmetics. I won’t go into it now, but the fact that it is a processed food that contains a preservative, is enough for me not to buy it. It is actually cheaper to buy a bag of chickpeas, and go through the soaking/cooking process yourself, so you know exactly what is in it. 

Picture: SOOOO, I realized we didn't take a picture of the finished product the day of the fundraiser! I will make this recipe again soon and post the pic, sorry about that!