Christmas Steak and Quinoa Bowl

      Welcome! It's been pretty slow in the Pandemonium kitchen recently so it's nice to get a chance to get back in the kitchen. I knew I didn't want to miss this month's holiday edition of the Improv Cooking Challenge. Typically, we pick two different ingredients and create something with that, but this time the theme is slightly different with the colors Red & Green as the theme. I had a couple ideas before settling on this one, but I knew from the get-go I wanted to create something savory. This recipe is great because it's festive, super easy to put together, and good for you. 

     Cheese isn't make-or-break here but if you know me, you know I love cheese. There are a couple great options here, to be honest, I can't think of a cheese that wouldn't work. I almost went with mozzarella pearls, I think they would be perfect here. Other options that would be great would be chevre or shaved parmesan. really, and cheese is good, I wanted one that was bright white but anything works. 

     The arugula is a great peppery flavor that goes with the quinoa well, esp with the bit of tang from the lemon in with the richness from the butter and the bouillon. However, as delicious as arugula is, it absorbs the dressing and changes to a dark green quickly. It retains its texture, but it looks slightly different, so dress it right before serving. It tempting to want to dress it while everything else is cooking, but I made that mistake and had to start over. Dress it at the end, right before serving. 

     What are pepperdrops? I've seen them bottled and on olive buffets at grocery stores. The bottled ones I thought were terrible, however, the ones on the buffet were like vibrant, fresh little pops of a sweet and vinegary treat. They are a Peruvian pepper, but they are more like a cherry tomato and aren't spicy in the slightest. 

     Want to see some other great Red & Green foods that are great for the holidays? Check out below and see what everyone else made. 

December Improv Cooking Challenge

Red & Green Foods

• Red and Green Quinoa and Steak Bowl by Pandemonium Noshery
• Strawberry Spinach Salad by Palatable Pastime
• Colorful Peppers Pulao by Sneha’s Recipe
• Tuscan Tortellini Soup by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Grinch Green Pancakes by Cookaholic Wife

Quinoa Recipe 

2 Tbsp. butter

2 Tbsp. lemon juice

Hefty pinch freshly cracked black pepper

2 Green onions, sliced

1/2 c. quinoa

2 chicken bouillon cubes

4 oz. Arugula

1 Tbsp. olive oil

2 tsp. lemon juice

Salt and pepper to taste

8-12 oz. steak, cooked and sliced

1 oz. cheese

1 oz. pepperdrops

Start your steak cooking so it has time to cook to your desired doneness with time to rest before slicing. 

Heat the butter in a small pot along with the black pepper and heat until sizzling. Add the white part of the green onion and lemon juice and cook until it appears slightly thickened. Add 1 1/4 c. water and the chicken bouillon cubes and simmer until the cubes are crushable. Add the quinoa, bring to a boil, and then reduce the heat and simmer for 15-20 minutes or until the quinoa is tender. Remove from the heat, add, the green parts of the green onions, and fluff with a fork. 

Divide the quinoa between two bowls. Top each bowl with half the steak. 

Combine the olive oil and lemon juice and toss with the arugula. Top each bowl with half of the arugula, half the cheese, and half the pepperdrops.

Serve immediately.