Tuna Patty Quinoa Bowl

I have been trying to make different things for lunch since salads can get a little old after awhile. So, lately I have been on this huge Quinoa kick. Every time I mention quinoa to someone, I get a response like "Eew... but its so dull" or "it tastes like dirt!!".  Would you trust me if I ate dirt for dinner and then wrote a blog about how delicious it is?  Come on... fire me now then!  I promise you I can change your mind about quinoa if you are one of those "Negative Nancys".  It is super easy and it took me 10 minutes from start to finish with my first bite in my trapper! Swear.... Here's how!

Ingredients for Tuna Patty:

• 1 can of white albacore tuna
• 1 egg
• 1-2 tbls chopped red onion
• 1-2 tbls chopped jalapeno
• 1-2 tbls black beans
• 1 tbls quinoa flour
• 1 tbls yellow mustard
• dash of salt and pepper
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• Coconut oil (for the pan when cooking the patty)

 Open the tuna can and drain of all of the excess water.  Place all of the tuna in a bowl and break up all of the chunks until it is shredded. 

Mix all the ingredients together and spoon divide the mixture. One can of tuna make 2 nice size patties but it made it difficult for flipping. To make it easier, make the patties small enough so they can flip without breaking. (I think I made mine too big and they fell apart a little bit when trying to be a master chef in kitchen and flipping the patty like I'm Mario Batali). 

Make sure to put enough olive oil or coconut oil in the pan so they don’t stick (about 1 tbs). Or maybe you have a nice frying pan that things don’t stick to.... I just might be due for new pans! ;)

Cook each side on medium heat for about 4 mins or until crispy brown!

Ingredients for the Quinoa Bowl:

3/4 cup cooked quinoa

chopped red pepper

chopped green pepper

chopped red onion

Sliced avocado

pepper to taste

Your choice of hot sauce: Cholula, Tapatio or Siracha (use at your desire! the spicier the better!)

Cook the Quinoa as directed on the package. What I did was cook a big batch and saved what I didn't use for dinner for lunches for the rest of the week. I love me some leftovers for easy lunch prepping throughout the week!

In this particular bowl, I left the veggies uncooked! With the quinoa being a little light on the flavor side, leaving the veggies uncooked gives the flavor of the bowl that much more flavor and freshness. Not only that, but it locks in all of the nutrients your body craves and provides more nutritional value without cooking it all out with heat!

Not sure if you knew this but.... Bell peppers are high in vitamin C, which is a water-soluble. By cooking or boiling them, the vitamins will escape!