Quinoa with Eggplant Saute

This dish was a great hit with my husband and may be a new personal favorite.

DH said he didn't even notice it was a vegetarian dish.

My daughters, however, got interrupted by some unexpected guests. So they ran off to play and their dinners sat on the table for an hour. After being reheated, the veggies and quinoa didn't quite live up to the first serving. But they didn't have any protests of not liking it. So, that's a plus!

Ingredients:

1 eggplant (peeled and chopped)

1 Mexican squash (halved and sliced)

1/2 Red onion (chopped)

1 small zucchini (halved and sliced)

2 minced cloves of garlic

1 Tbsp butter

1 Tbsp coconut oil

1/4 cup water

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, plus a little extra to top.

1/2 cup quinoa

Directions:

Eggplant Saute:

1. Saute veggies in oil and butter over medium high heat. Add in water. Reduce heat to medium heat. Cover and let steam help soften eggplant.

2. Sprinkle parmesan cheese over veggies.

Quinoa

3. Prepare quinoa. Boil 1 cup water. As water is heating, rinse quinoa thoroughly. It is covered with naturally bitter tasting saponins that block nutrient absorption. I use the hottest water out of my tap to rinse. When water is boiling, add in quinoa. Cover and reduce heat to low for about 10-15 minutes. 

4. Serve the eggplant saute over the quinoa. Sprinkle with any remaining parmesan cheese.