Baked Tomatoes with Quinoa, Corn and Green Chilis

Ah, the end of summer is near.  I am trying to enjoy as many tomatoes, peaches and ears of corn as possible before they are gone for the season.  This recipe is a great way to feature corn and tomatoes.

I should have heeded the comments on the Cooking Light site. All confirmed that this takes time and is not a great recipe for a weeknight dinner.  Alas, I made it on a Wednesday.  It does take time, but I found the results worthwhile.

I really liked the results of cooking the quinoa with the tomato juices.  I will aim to make the "stuffing" again sometime as it's a great quinoa recipe.

Kale Pesto

I love me some kale these days. 

I've mostly been enjoying kale in salad form.  I was in the mood for pesto, but the basil at the farmer's market wasn't looking so good this week.  So I bought kale instead, in hopes of making this recipe.  As with most pestos, it's is very easy to make with the assistance of the cuisinart.  The washing and blanching of the kale are the most time consuming parts.  I did toast the nuts which helps I think.  I only used about 2/3 of a large clove of garlic and found it to be plenty.  I served it over mini-cheese ravioli and froze some for later. 

Crunchy Chickpeas

These are a good snack and easy to make.  They take a little time in the oven, but they are worth it.  They are a good alternative to snacking on nuts.  They satisfy the crunchy, salty cravings.

Yotam Ottolenghi's Sweet Corn Polenta

Jenny sent this recipe and I wanted to try the corn part. I love eggplant but lately I feel like it is only good when fried. I served the corn next to a salad and it was delicious. You could do a lot with this...next time I want to saute tomatoes and garlic and add basil. It was very good with the butter and feta but it would probably be just as good if you make it vegan.