Brown Rice and Quinoa

In an effort to eat better in the new year, I want to have better sides with my meals. One of the things that I wanted was to get more quinoa into my diet. I wanted to mix it with brown rice to make a side dish that Pam would like (she does not love quinoa on its own). I found a recipe for Basic Brown Rice and Quinoa from the Chicago Tribune and I tweaked it with some great suggestions that I received at a great cooking demonstration at my work (the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan). They showed some great tricks with quinoa that I wanted to try. The chef also encouraged us to use more cinnamon and nutmeg for their health benefits. So I pulled it all together and made this great side dish. This will definitely be a regular in our house.

Ingredients (Serves 5-6)

1 1/3 cups Brown rice

2/3 cup Quinoa (rinsed and drained)

1 1/2 cups Water
1 cup Broth (vegetable or chicken)

1/2 tsp Kosher salt

1/2 tsp Black pepper

1/2 tsp Cinnamon

1/4 tsp Nutmeg

1 cup Baby spinach, chopped (about one big handful)

Directions

1. Add rice, quinoa, water, broth, Kosher salt, black pepper, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a pot. 2. Heat to boil. Cover pot and lower heat to a simmer for 30 minutes.

3. Remove from heat. Add the spinach and mix thoroughly. Replace the cover and let stand for 15 minutes.

Enjoy!