Warm Quinoa Vegetable Salad and Grilled Stuffed Cabbage

Quinoa Salad and Grilled Stuffed Cabbage
Salad Serves 8
Cabbage Serves 4-8 (depending on the size of the cabbage)

Quinoa Salad

1/2 cup uncooked quinoa (white or red)

2 cucumbers, peeled and seeded, chopped into 1/4 inch pieces (about 2 cups)
1 cup bell pepper, seeded and chopped into 1/4 inch pieces
1/2 cup pea pods, sliced into thin pieces
1/2 cup onion, diced
1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes (diced if not already diced)

4 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon of your preferred herb blend (I used Penzey's Tuscan Sunset blend.)
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1. Prepare quinoa according to instructions on the label.
2. While quinoa is cooking, prepare all veggies. Place veggies in a large bowl.
3. Mix vinegar, oil, mustard seasonings and pepper in a small bowl.  Whisk until mixed.
4. Add quinoa to veggies. Pour dressing, toss to mix and coat.

Nutritional Data (each serving is 3/4 cup):
Calories:          99
Fat:                  4.4g
Sat fat:            0.5g
Chol:                  0mg
Sodium:        75.9mg
Carbs:           12.6g
Fiber:              2.4g
Protein:          2.7g


Grilled Stuffed Cabbage

1 head of cabbage (red or green)
1-3 strips of bacon
1/2 medium onion, diced
2-4 teaspoons brown sugar

The amount of bacon you will use depends on the size of the cabbage.  Mine was small, about 4 inches (10 cm) across. I used 1.5 slices.

1. Preheat grill on high while prepping the ingredients.
2. In a non-stick skillet, fry the bacon until it is partially cooked. It will still be limp, but some of the fat will have melted off.
3. Remove bacon from the skillet and dice. Set aside.
4. Pour off most of the bacon fat (unless you want to use it all.) I used about 1 teaspoon.  Saute the onions over med-high heat until just translucent (3-4 minutes.) Remove from heat.
5. Core the cabbage and remove the largest (and inedible) outer leaves, leaving a tight head. With a sharp knife, create a well 2-3 inches deep and 1-2 inches across. Do not cut through the cabbage.
6. Fill the well with water (I used beer). You can also use wine or fruit juice.) Tightly wrap entire head with plastic wrap. Microwave for 5 minutes. Carefully remove from the microwave. It will be hot. CAREFULLY remove plastic wrap (it will be steamy) and pour off the liquid.
7. Fill the well with half of the bacon, some onion, the remaining bacon and onion to fill. Top with the 2 teaspoons brown sugar in a mound. (You might not use all the onion.)
8. Tear off a piece of aluminum foil (12" inches long.) Shape it into a long roll and fashion the roll into a ring just big enough to hold the cabbage off the surface of the counter. (The idea is to hold the well upright, keeping the cabbage off the grill grates, preventing it from burning.)
9. Place ring on grill. Over direct medium (300-400F) heat, grill cabbage. My 4" head cooked in 30 minutes. A larger head will take longer.
10. Cut into portions. Again, my cabbage made four servings. A large head will make more serving.

Nutritional Data:
Calories:          58
Fat:                  1.4g
Sat fat:             0.4g
Chol:               3.3mg
Sodium:        93.7mg
Carbs:              9.5g
Fiber:                  2g
Protein:           2.4g