Dinner, Vegetarian Style

My never-ending quest for nutritious and delicious meals led us to this dish that I’m calling Portobello Delight.  Hubby and I just finished dinner and we both agree that Portobello Delight deserves four out of five stars.  It’s a keeper.

Inspiration for this dish came from Kathy Freston’s book, Quantum Wellness.  A recent conversation with a friend reminded me that it was time to pull my copy from the shelf and dust it off a bit.  Kathy calls her version Garlic Portobello's Over Summery Quinoa.  Here’s my version.

Marinate approximately six medium-sized Portobello mushrooms in a mixture of 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar, 2 tablespoons olive oil, 3-4 cloves minced garlic, and 1 teaspoon dried basil.  (I did the marinating and chopping yesterday and threw everything together this evening.)

Sautee one diced red pepper and one shallot until soft. 

Add one-half bag of baby spinach and allow the spinach to wilt.  Meanwhile, cook one cup of quinoa in two cups of broth or water.  I used vegetable broth and cooked it in the rice cooker. 

Cook mushrooms in marinade over medium heat for fifteen minutes or so.  Slice into strips.

Transfer quinoa to serving bowl and top with sautéed veggies and mushrooms

The balsamic and garlic makes these mushrooms utterly delicious and the protein-filled quinoa serves as the perfect base.  Since hubby has no desire to adopt a vegetarian lifestyle, I sprinkled a little bacon on top of his serving.  And you know what?  He liked it better without the bacon. 

It’s a very good day when I find a vegetarian meal that hubby and I both enjoy.  Today was a very good day indeed.