Quinoa Vegetable Paella

Quinoa - pronounced "keen-wah" Cultivated by the Inca for hundreds of years. The individual grain when cooked forms a pretty translucent ring. Quinoa is a complete protein and a great addition to food storage for a heath-conscience diet with a low glycemic index.

• 1 onion, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 1/2 cups quinoa, rinsed
• 1/4 tsp. saffron, crushed
• 2 tsp. Spanish smoked paprika
• 1/2 tsp. ground cumim
• dash cayenne
• 1 14-ounce can diced tomatoes
• 1 red or yellow bell pepper, chopped
• 1 14-ounce can red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
• 2 3/4 to 3 cups vegetable broth
• 2 medium zucchini, halved lengthwise and sliced
• 1 cup fresh or frozen peas
• 1 can artichoke hearts, rised and quartered
• 2 Tbl. olive oil or broth for sauteing
  

1. Place quinoa into fine mesh stainer and rinse thouroghly.
2. Saute onion and garlic in deep skillet with olive oil or broth until soft.
3. Add the quinoa and saffron and continue to cook for 2 more minutes.
4. Add paprika, cumin, cayenne, tomatoes, pepper, beans, and 2 3/4 cup of broth. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to very low, cover and cook for 15 minutes.
5. After 15 minutes check to see if more broth in needed. If it looks dry, add the remaining broth.
6. Place the zucchini on top of the quinoa and revoce. Cook for 5 minutes more until quinoa is done.
7. Remove cover and stir in peas and cook uncovered until peas are warm and all liquid is absorbed. Arrange artichoke hearts on top and serve. Add salt at the table, if necessary

You will notice that not everyone like artichokes, so on our picture, only half of the paella have the artichokes.

original recipe from http://blog.fatfreevegan.com