Qunioa with Fennel and Pomegranate Seeds

If your Christmas week was half as decadent as mine was (and I have a few more recipes along those lines coming)- you're probably looking for a couple of healthy meals in this lull before New Year's Eve parties.  I personally struggle with making the transition from the decadence back to nutritious because the taste buds are still amped so I try to pack the flavor in where ever possible.   Lemon, tangy vinaigrette and fresh herbs are a great way to do so.

Inspired by a recipe in the January issue of Bon Appetite magazine (not yet published to epicurious.com) this quinoa dish is great warm or at room temperature - as a side dish or a standalone meatless dinner or lunch.  You can make a big batch and enjoy it for a couple of days...

Ingredients:

1 cup quinoa
1 medium fennel bulb- diced
1 small onion- diced
3 cloves of garlic- minced
1/2 teaspoon cumin
3 tablespoons balsamic vinaigrette
generous 1/2 cup freshly chopped herbs (I used parsley, dill and mint)
zest and juice of 1lemon
2 tablespoons olive oil
pomegranate seeds for garnish

Saute the fennel and onion in a drizzle of olive oil over medium heat until just starting to caramelize, 10-12 minutes.  Season with a pinch of kosher salt and some black pepper.  Add the garlic and cumin and cook one minute more.  Add the balsamic vinegar and cook until the liquid is evaporated, 1-2 minutes.  Remove from the heat and let sit while you prepare the quinoa.



Cook 1 cup of raw quinoa according to package instructions.  This typically requires rinsing the grain, simmering in boiling water for 10 minutes and draining.  Make sure you strain any left over cooking liquid.  While the quinoa cooks- chop your herbs and juice/zest the lemon...

Combine the cooked quinoa with the vegetable mixture, the herbs, lemon zest, juice and olive oil.  Toss gently to combine.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Garnish the dish with pomegranate seeds.  Look for these at your grocery store by the grapefruit segments in the refrigerated produce section- Pom brand is selling them now.   You can remove the seeds by hand from the whole fruit if you can't find them.

The tiny hint of cumin gives the dish a nice warmth in contrast to the tang of the reduced balsamic and lemon.  The herbs and pomegranate seeds pack in more flavor and freshness.  Don't be afraid of the fennel- if you cook it down this way, it loses virtually all of the licorice/anise taste.  However you could add any combination of sauteed or roasted veggies to this as well.