Roasted Leeks & Quinoa

I make a lot of "recipe centric" meals in an effort to learn, but man, I don't always want to follow a recipe. This is one dish where you don't have to follow anything, and hopefully it will give you another one of those non-thinking options when you just want to EAT. We need a stockpile of those, I think. Basically, the gist of this one is:

ROASTED VEGGIE + GRAIN + SAUCE + CRUNCHIES 

The sauce is nice because it unifies the ingredients into a composed-feeling dish while the crunchies add satisfying texture. And if you cook a ton of the grain or whip up a bunch of the sauce and pop in the fridge for next time, then you'll have the basics on hand for another quickie recipe, like a sandwich wrap or something. 

INGREDIENTS 

leeks roughly chopped

olive oil

salt

quinoa

tahini

lemon

sunflower seeds 

DIRECTIONS

1. Heat the oven to 400. 
2. Cook your quinoa with water or stock. When done, fluff with a fork to prevent mushing. (I cook extra for later and use water so it can become either sweet or savory.)
3. Toss the leeks with olive oil and salt on a baking sheet. Pop them in the oven. Make sure to watch closely and stir around because bits will start to burn. Cook until tender, about 10 minutes.
4. Mix some tahini with water and salt so it becomes a sauce. 
5. Toss together the quinoa, leeks, and tahini sauce. Finish with some fresh squeezed lemon and sunflower seeds.

Enjoy! xo, J