quinoa salad & poached pears

after receiving a whole grain cookbook from Chad & Lauren for Christmas

I combined a few of the ideas and made a spinach & quinoa salad

prepared poached pears in red wine for dessert

ever since Kelly made these for the mystery dinner I have wanted to try making them

started out with some red wine

then added in the juice of an orange and orange zest

and finally some sugar, cinnamon stick and cloves

while that simmered, I peeled the pears and cut off the bottoms so they could stand up

then placed them in the liquid for about a half hour

once the pears were cooked, I took them out and heated the liquid until syrupy

then poured that back over the pears and chilled them for a few hours

this dessert is very tasty and relatively healthy

good option if you are having friends over for dinner and dessert