I am ALL about saving a few minutes in the kitchen, time is a precious commodity in my busy life. While I want to save time, I don’t want to cut corners when it comes to making fresh, fit, fabulous meals – even when I’m frazzled, I’m a foodie at heart. 

One way I accomplish this quest for quick-fix, exciting food is by meal-prepping my grains “plain” (like rice, quinoa, wheat berries or whatever) and then sprucing up right before the meal with seasonal veggies, spices and herbs. Speaking of herbs, I really love the convenience and taste of Dorot Gardens little cubes of flash-frozen fresh herbs, read on to learn more, get my half-hour recipe for a colorful Carrot Kale Quinoa with Lemon Basil Gremolata and discover more inspiration for 30-minute meals and side dishes.  

There is NO need to be inventing everything from scratch, on the spot, during the dinner rush hour. Preparing big batches of quinoa, rice, ancient grains or even legumes (all plain, without a specific flavor profile) allows me to freeze in individual or family-sized portions and then defrost, and reheat with the veggies, spices and frozen herbs that I crave at the moment. That’s just smart thinking! 

Great mind must think alike, because Dorot Gardens does the same thing – but with herbs, garlic and onions. Dorat pulls fresh herbs from the fields at the peak of freshness, wash and chop, and then freeze in a freezer tray of single-use cubes within 90 minutes of harvest. You can’t get much fresher than that, unless you have your own herb garden . . . and then YOU have to do all the prep and clean-up work. Even when I buy fresh herbs, they are expensive and end up rotting in the fridge. I say frozen herbs FTW!

Last night I took made-ahead quinoa out of the freezer along with cubes of frozen herbs like basil and garlic from Dorot Gardens and then rummaged in my produce bin for the remaining ingredients in my speedy side dish – kale and carrots! And, viola, in 10 minutes I had Carrot Kale Quinoa with a Lemon Basil Gremolata “dressing”! It’s a delicious, nutritious side dish to your favorite protein, light lunch or base for a “bowl” of other ingredients and toppings.

Carrot Kale Quinoa with a Lemon Basil Gremolata is so good, I’d want to eat it day and day again (you will too, so check out the recipe at bottom of post):

In addition to Carrot Kale Quinoa, Dorot Gardens inspires me create other delicious, quick side dishes (on even my busiest, most frazzled days), like some of these:

Garlic Basil Roasted Baby Artichokes –– get all the deets on this super-fast spring side dish in the video:

Ginger Coconut Rice with Macadamia Nuts – A bit of coconut milk, a squeeze of lime and Dorot Ginger added to the liquid rice cooks in, then topped with macadamia nuts.  

Garlic Mushroom Quinoa  – Dorot Gardens Garlic used to sautéed mushrooms and then tossed in quinoa, so tasty with steak) 

Cilantro-Garlic Summer Squash – Sliced summer squash or zucchini sautéed in olive oil with Dorot Cilantro and Garlic and served with your favorite protein (like salmon)!

There is no end to how you can be creative (and quick) coming up with side dishes and full meals using Dorot Garden frozen herbs. They are available at Kroger and other fine retailers in the frozen food department, specifically near the frozen vegetables. These herbs are good to keep in the freezer for up to two years, and don’t take up much room. Pop out a cube or two and take your cooking on the fly to a whole new level!

What is your go to hurry-hurry dinner? If you don’t use herbs a lot in your cooking, why? Too expensive, not available, go bad too fast, don’t like the taste? Please share in the comments – XOXO, Jennifer 

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Carrot Kale Quinoa with Lemon Basil Gremolata

Prep Time

5 mins

Cook Time

5 mins

Total Time

10 mins

 

Course: Condiment, Main Dish, Salad, Side Dish

Cuisine: American

Servings: 4 servings

Ingredients

• 4 cups finely chopped kale
• 1 cup finely sliced tri-color carrots
• 1 tablespoon water
• 2 cups pre-cooked quinoa
• 3 cubes Dorat Gardens frozen basil
• 1 cube Dorat Gardens frozen garlic
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

Instructions

1. In small bowl, whisk together garlic, basil, olive oil, lemon juice, lemon zest, pepper and salt. Set aside.
2. Add kale and carrots to large microwave-safe bowl, drizzle with 1 tablespoon water, and loosely cover with a lid or plastic wrap, keeping contents vented.
3. Microwave on high for 2 minutes to steam vegetables, stirring halfway through.
4. Add cooked quinoa to bowl, and if cold, microwave with vegetables for another minute or two until warmed, but not overly hot.
5. Stir dressing into quinoa mixture until evenly coated. Serve warm, room temperature or cold.