quinoa with heirloom tomatoes and raspberry pear tart

I seem to be having an ambitious day in the kitchen. Today I made some quinoa with heirloom tomatoes and spices, and a pear tart with raspberry jam. The quinoa is delicious, but I always love quinoa. The tart needs a bit more sweetness, and I think the chia seeds in the crust may have been a mistake. Oh well, that's why this blog is about 'kitchen adventures' after all. First the quinoa.


Ingredients:
2 c organic red quinoa, rinsed
4 c organic low sodium vegetable stock
1 T dried rosemary
1 T 21 seasoning salute spice blend (from Trader Joe's)
3 medium organic heirloom tomatoes, diced


Rinse the quinoa in a mesh strainer, then drain. Dump it into a 4 quart saucepan and add the vegetable stock, rosemary (crushing in your hands as you add it), and 21 seasoning salute. Stir and bring to a boil, then cover and turn the heat down to a low simmer for 15 minutes. Dice the tomatoes and fold them into the quinoa at the end of the 15 minutes. Allow to simmer, covered, for about 5 more minutes, or until all the liquid has been absorbed. Uncover, fluff, and serve! This quinoa would make a great addition to a wrap :)

Now for the pear tart - 


Ingredients:
1 c almond meal
1/3 c chia seeds - (flax meal would probably work better)
1/2 c raw coconut butter 
3 ripe organic pears
3 T organic raspberry jam
1 t cinnamon


Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.


For the crust, measure the almond meal, flax meal or chia seeds, and coconut butter into a bowl. Crumble the coconut butter into small bits with your hands before kneading it in and you will get it spread throughout quickly. Knead these ingredients together until they will form a ball. You could probably add some maple syrup or honey at this point and mix that in for a bit more sweetness. 


Dump the crust mixture into a 12" glass pie pan and press into the bottom, going no more than 1/2 an inch up the sides. Place in the oven for 5 minutes, then remove and add the pears.


Slice the pears into about 16 wedges per pear, and toss them with the jam in a bowl until they are all coated. Add the cinnamon and toss again. I used my hands, since they'll be getting jammy while arranging the slices anyhow. Arrange the slices in circles on the crust, being careful not to burn yourself on the pan. 

Place back in the oven for 10-12 minutes, and remove when the pears are golden browned and the crust is golden on the edges. Voila!