Black Bean & Tomato Quinoa

This is from Epicurious. It's simple and delicious. If you leave out the butter, it's vegan and, just for you, Jene: dairy-free!

2 teaspoons grated lime zest
2 Tablespoons fresh lime juice
2 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1 Tablespoon vegetable oil
1 teaspoon sugar
1 cup (uncooked) quinoa
1 (14- to 15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
2 medium tomatoes, diced (I used a combo of yellow, grape, and Campari tomatoes)
4 scallions, chopped
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Whisk together lime zest and juice, butter, oil, sugar, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4teaspoon pepper in a large bowl.

If your quinoa does not say "pre-rinsed" on the package, wash quinoa in 3 changes of cold water in a bowl, draining in a sieve each time. This will get rid of the bitter powder it has in its natural, unwashed form.

Cook quinoa in a medium pot of boiling salted water (1 tablespoon salt for 2 quarts water), uncovered, until almost tender, about 10 minutes. Drain in sieve and fluff with fork.

Add quinoa to dressing and toss until dressing is absorbed, then stir in remaining ingredients and sea salt and coarsely ground cracked pepper to taste.

Peppery Muenster Biscuit Goodness

My friend Jihan brought over some amazing biscuits from Little Buddy Biscuit Company in Brooklyn the other night and after greedily devouring them, I was determined to recreate the deliciousness. Here's what I came up with. They are scrumptious and don't need butter or anything as a topper.

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons sugar
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
6 Tablespoons (3/4 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
10 oz. Muenster Cheese, coarsely grated (1 1/2 cups)
2 teaspoons coarsely ground black pepper
1 cup well-shaken buttermilk

Preheat oven to 450°F.
(I put the Muenster in the freezer before making this recipe to make grating easier)

Whisk together flour, baking powder, sugar, baking soda, salt, and ground pepper in a bowl, then blend in butter with your fingertips until mixture resembles coarse meal. Stir in Muenster cheese. Add buttermilk and stir until just combined.

Spoon dough into mounds (size depending on how many you wish to make) about 2 inches apart onto a buttered large baking sheet. Bake in middle of oven until golden, 18 to 20 minutes.

These are best eaten right out of the oven. The next morning, they were delicious, but the texture was less like that of a biscuit and more like a crumpet.