This week I suggest a recipe I tried recently: zucchini rolls with red and black quinoa. Since I subscribed to Cucina Naturale, an Italian magazine, I am hooked on its recipes! When I received a new email letting me know the new issue is available, I take a seat, sip a coffee, and then I read it from the first page to the last one. When I was living in Italy, I usually went to the newsstand and bought it every month. Now I am subscribed online since they don’t send it to Spain.

If you have a food blog as I have or you simply love cooking and understand Italian, I suggest it 100%. I like this magazine because as the name says, you get great ideas for cooking healthy recipes, including vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, etc.

So in the latest issue, I saw this recipe about zucchini rolls. The original recipe suggests to use a type of cereal I cannot find in my town, and since we love quinoa at home, I decided to try with this instead. I hope you enjoy it too!

INGREDIENTS

For the zucchini rolls

2 big zucchini (courgette)

50 gr (¼ cup) red quinoa 

50 gr (¼ cup) black quinoa 

35 gr (¼ cup) pistachio nuts, without shell

Extra virgin olive oil

Salt to taste

A bunch of fresh herbs (thyme, basil, peppermint, and chive)

For the dip

100 ml (⅜ cup) natural yogurt

5 peppermint leaves, chopped

The juice of half a lemon 

Extra virgin olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

METHOD 

Wash the quinoa, toast it in a pan and then in a pot bring to a boil, cook for 15-20 minutes at low heat with the cover on. Set aside for at least 5 minutes.

Cut the zucchinis with the help of a slicer into strips and cook them both sides on a grill pan.

Meanwhile add the quinoa into a bowl, season with 1 or 2 tablespoons of olive oil, salt, and most of the fresh herbs and pistachios finely chopped.

Now take a zucchini strip, add some quinoa mix and make rolls. Close each one with a chive, as in the photos. Repeat with all the strips.

Once finished preparing the dip. In a small bowl mix the yogurt, 1 tbsp olive oil, juice of half a lemon, peppermint leaves, salt, and pepper.

Serve and… buon appetito!