A Collection Of Costco Quinoa Salad Copycat Recipes

Costco has a lot of great products in their deli section and one of the most popular is the Quinoa Salad.  While searching online I discovered that a lot of people have been coming up with copycat recipes and I thought I might share them with you today. I do want to be clear, I haven’t made any of these but the reviews are overwhelming positive so I thought they should be be brought to others attention.

Here is one from The Tasteful Tribe.

Nourished by Nic also has one.

Another blog focusing on good nutrition, Wellness by Kay also has one.

And finally, we have one by Clean Eating Kitchen.

As you can see, given quinoa’s well deserved reputation as a superfood, many of these copycat recipes are from nutrition focused individuals. That these recipes are also delicious according to their readers makes for a win-win situation!

So please check out these fellow food bloggers, they have done some great work

I hope you enjoy checking these out and happy eating!

Costco 12 Piece Anodized Cookware on Closeout for $119-It has an Asterik!

 Most experienced Costco shoppers know the asterisk on a price tag means an item is discontinued.  I saw that on the Kirkland Signature 12 Piece Non-Stick cookware set.

This generally gets good reviews so this is probably your last opportunity to buy this value priced set.

I also noticed they had a bent box unit of it for $95 at the Kalamazoo, Michigan store.

That is a pretty good price. Somebody is going to get a great deal!

Jarlsberg and Gouda Penne with Chicken Sausage.

 Jarlsberg is on sale this week so we wanted to try something cheesy and different than our previous dinners by making a pasta dish. The Sabatino sausages were also on sale for some added punch to the dish.

I grated Jarlsberg and Smoked Gouda (about 2 cups total).

I added a couple tablespoons of corn starch and distributed it to allow the cheese sauce to thicken and to avoid clumping.

In a Dutch oven, I added a cup of Pinot Grigio and started slowly adding the cheese after it came to a simmer. We will admit we bought the wine from Aldi but Costco has plenty of affordable quality wines that we could have used.  

After all the cheese was melted, four sausages were cut up and added. The dish was seasoned with freshly ground nutmeg and black pepper and finished by adding a half pound of cooked penne.

In the end, this was a very satisfying and easy to make dish which we will surely replicate.  The cheeses worked well together with the simple white wine sauce.  Adding the sausage gave some variety and lent a meat portion to the dish.  The cost for six servings was probably less than the cost of one meal at a restaurant and it took about the same if not less time than going to a restaurant or getting delivery.

A good home cooked meal like this is satisfying, tasty and quick.  And shopping at Costco makes it an absolute bargain.

Review of Rana Beef and Short Rib Lasagna on sale at Costco

 Like many people, we love lasagna but it is a dish that takes some time and effort to prepare so something that you can just put in the oven has a lot of appeal.  And it being on sale made it easy to try.

It comes refrigerated, so that definitely makes it a bit more upscale than frozen.

You take it out of the cardboard box and is pretty much ready to go into the oven.

Since it is refrigerated, it only takes 20 minutes to bake and you are all set for dinner!

My lovely wife and I both enjoyed it. It has good texture and flavor. It also had solid portions of meat and cheese- it wasn’t all tomato sauce and noodles.  While not as good as the best homemade or restaurant lasagna, it was tasty and a good value. And at 20 minutes of baking time, it is faster than ordering out.

It also has a really good shelf life so you can stock up.

Go ahead and indulge in some lasagna, it’s easy, quick and affordable.

A Review of Kevin’s Paleo Thai-Style Coconut Chicken at Costco

 

With it being on sale for $3.50 off this month, we definitely thought this was worth a try. It comes in a 32 oz total package with the sauce and the chicken packed separately.

It can be heated up on the stove top or in the microwave which does increase its versatility. In either case, the prep is pretty easy.

The heated chicken and sauce came together quickly and looked tasty and smelled good.

We are big fans of the Lotus Foods Millet and Brown Rice  Ramen Noodles at Costco. The big bag of them is pretty affordable about at Costco and they are more flavorful and and have more fiber than your standard ramen.

Being ramen noodles, they cook up in just a few minutes.

As we expected, the noodles paired very nicely with the chicken and the sauce.

This is not the best coconut chicken you will ever have but it is certainly tasty and a  good value at full price. On sale it is definitely a bargain.  My lovely wife did suggest the next time we get it that we throw in some frozen vegetables, most likely frozen peas. We also might try it with rice.

If you enjoy curries, this an affordable, easy to prep option that will save you lots of time and money over getting takeout.

Peppers And Tomatoes Stuffed With Quinoa And Chorizo

I have been intrigued by the idea of stuffed peppers for a long time.  My mother's side of the family immigrated from Eastern Europe two generations ago and stuffed peppers are a favorite in those cultures. I thought the idea of using something hearty and healthy to stuff peppers with sounded like a great idea, but I thought I could put my own spin on it.  I have seen various quinoa stuffed veggies over the years and that seemed like a good start. After some further thought, I decided to use cooked chorizo as the meat in the dish.  Admittedly the sausage makes the dish way less healthy but I do feel less guilty since quinoa rocks as a superfood.  I do have to be honest I made the food more for taste than nutrition but there is at least some nutrition to it with the vegetables, the quinoa and the chia seed.

But that was not the only way I experimented with the dish. While discussing this idea with my wife, she suggested adding a poblano chili to the stuffing and I thought that was an excellent idea. Then, to round out the flavors, we added some chopped onion.  Finally, since my wife is not fond of cooked peppers, we stuffed some tomatoes to suit her tastes. The final dish was as follows:

1 small sweet onion chopped
1 pound chorizo
1 poblano, seeded and chopped
1 cup quinoa, cooked according to directions
About 1 tablespoon of chia seed(Available from Costco)

Peppers and tomatoes, tops cut off and centers cleaned for stuffing

Oven was preheated to 350 degrees.

The chorizo and onion were sauteed together, until the chorizo was cooked through. The chopped poblano was then added and cooked for a few moments. Finally, the cooked quinoa was added, along with chia.  The filling was mixed together and then the vegetables were stuffed.

The stuffed vegetables were placed in the oven and cooked until the tops were browned a bit, about 20 minutes. (Please feel free to cook these to your preference).

Aside from being good eats, I thought the results were attractive:

This was definitely a success and I highly recommend experimenting with stuffed peppers and tomatoes.

A Review of Costco's Beef Bulogi Korean BBQ

As readers of this blog know we like to cook but sometimes we like a tasty meal that is not a lot of work.  Costco's Beef Bulogi Korean Barbecue nails this for us.

It is sold in the deli section in a good family sized portion and as soon as you open it, it looks good!

Before cooking, my wife cut it up a bit and then put it in our red Tramontina skillet we got from Costco.  We have affectionately nicknamed this pan "Big Red" and it gets a lot of use in our house.  It is one of the few items we kept when we upgraded our cookware with that fabulous set of Calphalon from Costco.

After cooking it smells good and looks great.

We served it with brown rice and Costco's Quinoa Salad.  I imagine some people find the two side dishes redundant but the rice and the salad really have very different tastes and texture profiles so there is a lot of good variety in this meal.

This worked really well for us. The beef was a flavorful and quick meat dish, the rice was a nice compliment to eat with the beef and the salad was a tasty, brightly flavored side dish.

The beef bulogi also works well in a beef sandwich so you can leverage into a variety of different meals.

This is has definitely become one of our favorite deli items at Costco and we will definitely buy it again.

Our Best Pizza Ever-Chicken and Artichoke Hearts with Pesto Sauce and Fresh Mozzarella

We have made a lot of pizza at home over the years and with the current pandemic we have been make it about every other week lately.  We do a lot of pepperoni by itself or with a variety of toppings. But we do tend to make two pizzas at a time and we also go for some variety.  We had some chicken in the freezer that I pulled out for the meat on the second pizza.  For a crust, I made our extremely reliable and easy recipe from Tyler Florence.

For a sauce on the pizza we used the Kirkland Signature Basil Pesto.  

Here is the crust with the pesto on it:

I add some Artichoke Hearts from Costco.

After adding the chicken the pizza is starting to look pretty good!

Finally, I add the Belgioioso Fresh Mozzarella and it goes in the oven with its companion pepperoni based pizza.

Bake it until it is golden brown and delicious and you end up with this magnificent pizza.

The pesto sauce gives a very different cheesy, herbal flavor versus the more typical marinara sauce.  Chicken as a meat is a good match for the other major topping of the artichoke hearts.  Finally, the fresh mozzarella completes the profile of brighter, less heavy flavors.

As I said, we tend to make a lot of pizza.  We always have enjoyed what we have made but this one really stands out as the best pizza we have ever made.  And with all the quality ingredients we get from Costco at a great price it is really easy and affordable to make.

I absolutely recommend getting some pesto, cheese and artichoke hearts from Costco and making your own killer pizza like this.

I am really confident you will love it.

Enjoy!

Costco In Warehouse Hot Buys for 6/13 to 6/20

Costco is again running a weeklong Hot Buy Sale.  Below is a summary of food, beverage and cooking related items.

Kerrygold Salted or Unsalted Butter, $4 off, Limit 3.  Here is a link to various posts involving Kerrygold Butter.

Beyond Meat The Beyond Burger, 8/4oz patties, $3 off, Limit 3. While I have not had these burgers yet, we have enjoyed meatless burgers and burgers in general.

Trident Alaska Salmon Burgers, 12 count, $4 off, limit 3

San Pellegrino 24/15.9 fl oz bottles, $4.50 off, Limit 5

Cheetos Crunchy, 28.8 oz bag, $1.50 off, Limit 4

Mini Watermelon, Organic or Conventional, $1 off, Limit 10

Sonoma Creamery Bacon Cheddar Crisps, 10 oz, $2.90 off, No Limit

Kind Bars Nuts and Spices Variety Pack, 20 count, $5 off, Limit 5

Sabatier 10 Piece Cutlery Set with Acacia Wood Block, $15 off, Limit 5

GoGurt, 32/2.25oz, $3.20 off, Limit 10

Mini Chocolate Chip Cookie, 60 count, $1.50 off, No Limit

Raisin Bran Crunch, 2/28.3 oz bags, $2.40 off, Limit 10

Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Keurig K-Cup Pods, Hazelnut Flavored, 54 count, $19.99, Limit 5

Review Of Hawaiian Style Chicken by Naples Kitchen On Sale At Costco Until 6/14

We saw this in the monthly sales flyer and I knew we had to try it and we are very glad we did.  It was normally $14.99 but with the coupon it was only $10.49 for the three pound package.

The directions were to warm up the chicken in the oven and the sauce separately in a pan on the stove but I was lazy and ignored the directions and just dumped it all into a 9 by 13 glass baking dish.

I put it in the oven for 15 minutes at 350 degrees F and it came out like this:

We served it with rice and some of the Normandy Style Vegetables we keep on hand in the freezer.

We really like this chicken.  It had a bit of tang and sweetness, but it was definitely not a Sweet and Sour Chicken.  It definitely had character, flavor and good texture.  Serving it with rice gave something to up soak up every little bit of the yummy sauce and the vegetables on the side made it a complete meal.

 My only comment is that I should have followed directions.  Heating up the sauce separately like the directions said would have made for a better temperature of the chicken and the sauce.  But that is completely my fault-next time I will follow the instructions!

Also, we found that this made six really nice servings with the meal as we served it.  The package says 10 servings but to do that you would probably want more on the side to make it a complete meal.  But even at full price at six servings per package that $2.50 a serving and on sale it is less than $1.80 per serving. You can use this as a foundation of a really nice meal and even with sides still come out at a less than the price of a Whopper Junior meal.



We will definitely buy this again and it gets a full and complete recommendation from me and my wife.

Dinner with Kirkland Signature Pesto on Pasta with Sabatino's Sausage and Normandy Vegetables- A True Costco Meal

We like to cook but sometimes it is nice to have a meal at home that you put together yourself but is also a real time saver.   That was this dinner.  I started by turning on the Griddler and getting it warm. At the same time I got the water boiling for the pasta.  For a sauce for the spaghetti I chose the Kirkland Signature Basil Pesto.  This is an excellent pesto at a great Costco price.

For the meat serving I chose the Sabatino's Smoked Mozzarella with Artichokes and Garlic Chicken Sausage. Being a chicken sausage they are somewhat lower in fat than beef or pork sausages but they taste great. They are also fully cooked so all you have to do is get them warm.  However we do like to brown them for maximum taste but that is your choice.  While I used our Griddler for quick indoor cooking these are also fabulous over a charcoal grill.

They were on sale at Costco earlier this year and we tried them in part because of that.  But we will definitely consider buying them again for their great taste and convenience.  They come in a three pound package with four smaller packages of four each for a total of 16 sausages.

For the vegetables we had some Kirkland Signature Normandy Style Vegetable Blend.  Having frozen veggies on hand is a nutritious and convenient strategy.  All you have to do is microwave them and you are ready to eat.

While we cooking the pasta I microwaved the veggies and grilled the sausage.  Dinner came together very quickly and easily.  And it was a breeze to serve.

This meal was complete with vegetables, meat and pasta.  It was also darn tasty too and pretty affordable.  Add in the fact that it came together in minutes make this a real winner for a weekday supper or an easy weekend lunch. Actually, it is a fine meal anytime but when you need some speed this really rocks!

Enjoy!

Summary of Costco Food on Sale in Coupon Book for 05/20-6/14

After a hiatus of regular monthly food sales it appears that Costco is back on track. Below is a summary of all the food some charcoal (for grilling) and a dog treat.  Pets get special consideration here at Costco Cuisine with us referring to the items for them as Costco Canine Cuisine. (When some cat items show up that are treat related I will refer to them as Feline Cuisine).

Most of the items below are warehouse only but a few can be shipped.

Happy Eating!

Snack Factory Organic Pretzel Crisps 28 oz, $2.90 Off, Limit 5

Angie’s BoomChickaPop Kettle Corn 25oz, Buy One Get One Free, Limit 5

Power Up Trail Mix Variety Pack 24 count, $4.10 Off, Limit 5

Clif Bar Variety Pack, 24 count, $5 Off, Limit 2

Innofoods Organic Dark Chocolate Nuggets 18oz, $2.30 Off Limit 4

Shelia G’s Chocolate Chip Brownie Brittle 16oz, Buy One Get One Free, Limit 5

Nature Valley Sweet and Salty Peanut Granola Bars 48 count, $3.90 Off, Limit 5

Heinz Picnic pack (Two Bottles Ketchup and One Each Sweet Relish and Yellow Mustard), $3 Off, Limit 2

Kingsford Professional Briquets 2/18 lb bags, $6 Off, Limit 2

Nylabone Natural Nubz Edible Dog Chews 22 count, $5 Off, Limit 2 (Costco Canine Cuisine)

Bai Antioxidant Variety Pack 15/18 fl oz, $4.50 Off, Limit 10

Red Bull Energy Drink Original and/or Sugar Free 24/ 8.4 fl oz, $7 Off, Limit 2

Starbucks Mocha Frappuccino 15/9.5 fl oz, $4 Off, Limit 5

Spindrift Sparkling Water Variety Pack 30/12 fl oz, $4 Off, Limit 10

Humm Organic Kombucha Variety Pack, 6/14 fl oz, $4 Off, No Limit

Activa Variety Pack, 24/4 fl ox, $3 Off, No Limit

Nestle Drumstick Variety Pack, 16 count, $2.50 Off, Limit 3

Melona Frozen Desert Bars Variety Pack, 24 count, $3.30, Limit 3

President Feta Crumbles, 24 oz, $2.70, No Limit

Hawaiian Style Grill Chicken 3 lbs, $4.50,  Limit 2

Rana Tagliatelle Grilled Chicken & Portobello Mushroom Sauce 40 oz, $3 Off, No Limit

Noosa Yoghurt Variety Pack, 12/ 4 oz, $2.90, No Limit

A Family Tradition-Sunday Waffles with Kirkland Signature Maple Syrup and a Link to Kerrygold Recipes

When I met my wife she informed that her family had a major tradition of Sunday brunch with the main course being waffles.  Alas, as some family members have moved or passed away those brunches have become more of an anomaly versus a regularity.  We do go through changes in life and I appreciate that but I do feel a sense of loss of such a righteous family activity.

With the Coronavirus we don't currently can't attend a live church service although we do watch ours (which is performed in an empty church) via a live stream.  As part of connecting to family and food we have started the tradition of Sunday morning waffles before we watch church.  

The waffle recipe below is a core part of my wife's family.  They have been using it for decades. It was created by my wife's grandfather when he took her uncles on scouting/camping trips. (That is why it has powdered milk  in it.) Later, they started using at the family cabin and that is why it is called the Cabin Recipe.

This recipe  will also work for pancakes, the kind that grandpas make for their grandkids with their initials or other shapes.  Also, the recipe scales down very effectively.  The version below is for eight servings but we scale it down for four servings.  With four servings my wife and I each get two waffles on Sunday and another two as leftovers on Monday.  Leftover waffles are definitely a great way to start the week!

I would like to thank my wife for two things. The first is for sharing this recipe and the second is for translating this recipe.  Grandpa was a mechanical engineer and the way he wrote the recipe reflects that with most measurements in decimal format (example- 0.61 C Powdered Milk)!  My wife converted the quantities and other things so that it would make sense to a non-engineer.


Cabin Waffle Recipe

Eggs	4	Each
Sugar	¼	Cup
Vanilla	1	Teaspoon
Powdered Milk	¾	Cup
Water	2 ½	Cup
Oil	½	Cup
Salt	1	Teaspoon
Flour	4	Cup
Baking Powder	2	Tablespoon

Whip the eggs until fluffy, add the rest of the ingredients in order.  Incorporate the flour and baking powder until just barely mixed.  The batter should still appear lumpy.  Do not overmix.

Substitutions: 3 cups milk for powdered milk & water.  This recipe was created to allow for use while camping.

While the waffle recipe is excellent, there are two things that really put the waffles over the top.  The first one is Kerrygold Butter. Speaking of Kerrygold, I have added a link to their recipe page.

The second is Kirkland Signature Maple Syrup. This is definitely another great Costco product at an excellent price.

And finally, it all comes together in one delicious breakfast.

At some point we will go back to attending church in person and won't have time before church to make waffles and relax eating them.  But we will still have occasional brunch on Sunday and breakfast on Saturday as opportunities to make them.  Now that we have waffles back we aren't going to give them up!

Costco Sale From 05/09/20 to 05/17/20

I noticed that  Costco has a sale going on until 5/17/2020.  They have changed their sale schedule lately in what I assume is a response to the Coronavirus.

Among the various food items on sale are:

Organic Blueberries: 18 oz $3.99/ 32 oz $6.99

Kellogg's Frosted Mini Wheats $3 off

Gourmet Chocolate Chunk Cookies $1.50 off

CJ Bibigo Beef Bulgogi Mandu-$3 off

Columbus Seasoned Turkey Burgers-$3 off

Season's Sardines-$3 off

Carr's Table Water Water Crackers Variety Pack-$4

They also have some Costco Canine Cuisine on sale for your dog:

Top Chew Flame Grilled Patty-$5.50 off

There are a variety of non-food items on sale.  

Enjoy!

Comfort Food for Trying Times: A Review of Idahoan Buttery Homestyle Mashed Potatoes

The most commented post I have ever had has been about Honest Earth All Natural Creamy Mashed Potatoes.  Unfortunately, Costco does not carry these anymore or at least not on a regular basis.  With the last of our stash of them gone, my lovely wife restocked us with some Idahoan Buttery Homestyle Mashed Potatoes.

 They come eight pouches to a box for $6.49 so the cost is reasonable for upscale instant mashed potatoes.

The individual packages are easy to open foil pouches.  Each package has four servings each so the whole box is 32 servings, making the cost about 20 cents a serving.

My wife likes to make them a measuring cup so she doesn't have to dirty more than one dish making them.  Obviously, if you are serving company and want a nice presentation then you would want to use a more elegant bowl or dish to serve them in.

We recently had these with some ham with glaze and a salad and it made for a quick but very tasty complete meal.

These are very good potatoes but I am sure people are wondering if these are as good as the Honest Earth ones.  While these are excellent instant mashed potatoes, they are not as good.  I definitely prefer the texture and body of the Honest Earth Potatoes along with the flavor.  Also, the Idahoan Potatoes are made so that butter is not part of the preparation.  You can certainly add butter to them and it adds to the taste but it also does affect the texture and body a little so that does impact the comparison.

Now let me be perfectly clear, these are very good potatoes at a good price that are well packaged but they are not as good as Honest Earth.  But they absolutely have my full and complete endorsement
and we will definitely buy them again.  They are a tasty, affordable and easy way to add potatoes to a meal.

Also, in these trying times of Covid19, these are a fabulous comfort food that helps to make life better.

Enjoy and be well!