Crockpot Quinoa |Cooking With Amanda

You know that saying "a dog is a man's best friend?"

Well, I think that's false.

After much ponder-age, I have decided that a slow cooker really is a man's best friend.

Let's look at the facts shall we?

1. It makes dinner FOR YOU. You just need to throw some random things into it, press a button and VOILA! Somehow a delicious meal is magically ready when you get home.

When was the last time you came home to a big batch of pulled pork made by your furry friend?

2. It makes your house smell REALLY amazing while it does its thang.

"WOW, your house smells so good! What kind of dog do you have?" Said no one ever.

Now, I'm sure there are many other comparisons to make in the dog vs slow cooker debate but, let's be real, those are PRETTY compelling

ESPECIALLY when we're talking about spicy, Slow Cooker Mexican Quinoa that is topped with ooey-gooey cheesy goodness.

The only way to get some Mexi-goodness out of your dog is to put a sombrero on its head.

And, that's just not the same.

Now, this quinoa. It's almost embarrassingly easy. As in you just have to make a FEW chops, open some cans, and then the slow cooker does the rest for you.

How awesome is that right? Spending all night slaving in the kitchen < working for 5 minutes and then using your saved time to binge-watch "The Millionaire Matchmaker"

Not that I know anything about that.

Anyway.

Besides being easy-peasy, this Mexican quinoa is loaded with ALL the healthy goodness: chickpeas, black beans, corn, peppers, AND tomatoes.

It's a veggie fiesta up in here folks.

And, you're on the VIP invite list.

So, what are you waiting for? Let's get crock-in'.

Sorry, had to.

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Crockpot Quinoa Recipe

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Ingredients

1 cup quinoa, uncooked
1 cup frozen corn
2/3 cup reduced sodium chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1/2 cup black beans, drained and rinsed
1 cup red pepper, chopped, about 1 large pepper
1 cup roma tomato, chopped, about 2 tomatoes
1/2 cup onion, roughly chopped, about 1/2 large onion
1/2 tablespoon cumin
1 tablespoon garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon salt
pinch of black pepper
1-1 1/2 tablespoons sauce from a can of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
2 cups reduced sodium vegetable broth
shredded cheddar cheese, for garnish
fresh cilantro, for garnish

Directions

Spray your slow cooker with cooking spray and place the uncooked quinoa, corn, chickpeas, black beans, red pepper, tomato, onion cumin powder, garlic, salt, pepper and adobe sauce inside, stirring until well combined.
Pour in in the vegetable broth, stir well, and cover the pot. Cook on high for 3-4 hours. Mine was perfect at 3 hours, so check it and make sure the quinoa isn't burning.
Once cooked, season to taste with additional salt and pepper and garnish with cheese and cilantro.

Notes

I preferred the quinoa with 1 ½ tablespoons of adobo sauce, because I like a little bit of kick. If you're very sensitive to spice, I would go with one tablespoon.