Quinoa Fiesta Enchilada Bake

Tonight, I made a high protein vegetarian dish to take over to Lauren and Ari's house for dinner and we all agreed it was blog-worthy, which means it passed the taste test. They both had to work today so I thought a meatless, 17 grams of protein per serving, cheesy, gooey, hot dish would hit the spot after a weekend of celebrating the New Year.
They had a New Year's Eve party at their house and spent yesterday cleaning up so I did what moms do; make dinner. Their party included a sit down dinner of pork roast for eleven friends, karaoke, a photo booth

and even played outside in the snow after it started snowing Saturday night. Fun times. And Bruce and I couldn't even stay up until midnight...oh, to be young again. I got this recipe from skinnytaste blog that is full of delicious, healthy recipes with Weight Watcher's points listed for each recipe so it's a good blog if you want to watch your calorie intake after all this holiday eating. I don't have many good quinoa recipes and to be perfectly honest, never really cared for it. But it is so high in protein, low in fat, high in fiber and just an all around great grain and one of the most popular "super foods". I am always looking for that one good recipe using quinoa and I think I may have finally found it.

Serves 6

1-1/4 cups quinoa, thoroughly rinsed unless the package claims it was pre-rinsed on the label. (Rinsing improves the flavor, otherwise, it may taste soapy or bitter)
2 cups chicken broth
1/2 tsp. olive oil
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 8-ounce can tomato sauce
1-1/2 tsp. cumin
1/4 tsp. kosher salt
1/4 cup broth
1 tsp. sugar
1 Tbsp. chipotle peppers in adobo sauce (or more if you want it spicy)
1 4-ounce can diced green chili peppers
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
3/4 cup frozen corn
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro, plus 2 Tbsp. for garnish
2 cups shredded Mexican cheese blend (8 ounce package)
1 medium avocado, diced
2 Tbsp. chopped scallions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lightly spray a 9 x 12 baking dish with oil.

2. In a medium saucepan, cook the quinoa with 1-3/4 cup broth according to package instructions: when cooked fluff with a fork and set aside.

3. Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, heat the oil over medium-low heat. Add garlic and sauté until golden, about 1-2 minutes.

4. Add tomato sauce, cumin, salt, broth, sugar and chipotle peppers in adobo sauce. Bring to a boil and simmer 3-4 minutes.

5. In a large bowl, combine the cooked quinoa, green chiles, black beans, corn and 1/4 cup cilantro. Stir in 1 cup cheese and mix well.

6. Place into a baking dish and spread out.

7. Top with enchilada sauce.

8. Sprinkle remaining cheese over top.

9. Cover with foil and bake until hot and the cheese has melted, about 20 -25 minutes.

10. To serve, top with avocado, scallions and remaining fresh cilantro.

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