Recipe: Portobello Quinoa Stacks

PORTOBELLO QUINOA STACKS
"Inspired by a dish I enjoyed in a vegetarian restaurant in Calgary, I replicated this at home because it combines lots of my favorite flavors."



"If this artful stack seems too fussy, deconstruct the dish by scattering the quinoa over four plates and topping each pile with a portobello. Smear each mushroom with baba ghanouj or hummus and top with spinach. Scatter the tomatoes over the plate and drizzle everything with oil."

2 cups water or vegetable broth, plus more water as needed
1 cup dried white or red quinoa, rinsed
1 (5 oz) package baby spinach
4 large portobello mushrooms, stems removed
1/2 cup baba ghanouj Baba Ghanou
or hummus
2 tomatoes, seeded and diced
Hemp oil or fruity extra virgin olive oil, for drizzling*

In a medium saucepan, bring the 2 cups water or broth and quinoa to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to low, then simmer, covered, until the water has been absorbed, 12 to 15 minutes. Fluff the quinoa with a fork, transfer to a bowl and keep warm.

In the same saucepan, bring 1-inch water to a boil over high heat. Add the spinach and cook, covered, just until the spinach wilts, 1 to 2 minutes. Drain the spinach well. Transfer the spinach to a fine-mesh sieve and press out any remaining liquid with a wooden spoon. Tip the spinach into a second bowl and keep warm.

Meanwhile, put the portobello caps, gill sides down, on a rimmed baking sheet. Broil under high heat until tender, about 4 minutes per side.

TO ASSEMBLE THE STACKS:
Put 1 mushroom cap, gill side up, on each of 4 plates. Spread each mushroom cap with 2 tablespoons babaghanouj or hummus, then top with the quinoa. Spoon one-quarter of the spinach on top of the quinoa (spoon each portion of spinach into a measuring cup or small bowl to help form it). Top each stack with tomatoes and drizzle with oil.

*Hemp oil is green and nutty, and available in the refrigerated section of health food stores or the natural food section of some large supermarkets.

Makes 4 servings
Used by permission to Recipelink.com from Random House
Source: Toronto Star Cookbook by Jennifer Bain