Buffalo Chicken Quinoa

Now that I'm sharing this dinner, I want to eat it immediately. We love Frank's buffalo sauce in this house but go through phases of eating a lot of it and then carelessly avoiding it for awhile. It's been in the cabinet too long at the moment. This quinoa is a perfect weeknight meal and the leftovers make a great lunch. This is easily transitioned to a vegetarian option by removing the chicken and adding more broccoli. If you like things extra spicy, you can change your hot sauce preference. I once (accidentally!) made this with the Frank's extra hot. It was just too much for me, especially when reheated. I'll stick with the delicious tang of buffalo wing sauce. This recipe was a Pinterest discover from Half Baked Harvest.

You will need:
*1 cup quinoa (be sure to rinse it well before cooking)
*2 cups water
*1 pound boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into bite size pieces
*1 cup broccoli florets
*1 cup shredded carrots
*1/2 cup blue cheese crumbles, plus more for serving
*4 green onions chopped, divided
*1/2 cup olive oil
*1/2 cup hot sauce (I recommend Frank's buffalo)
*1 teaspoon seasoned salt

1. Place quinoa and water in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, then cover and simmer with the heat on low. Cook for about 20 minutes or until all the water is absorbed. Remove cooked quinoa from heat and fluff with a fork.

2. While the quinoa is simmering, cook the chicken pieces in a skillet. While the chicken is cooking, make the sauce by combining the olive oil, hot sauce, and seasoned salt in a measuring cup. Whisk to combine. Once the chicken is almost finished, add the broccoli and about 1/4 cup of the sauce.

3. Remove the skillet from the heat once the chicken is fully cooked and the broccoli has softened to your liking. (I prefer to leave it a little crunchy) Stir in the carrots, blue cheese crumbles, cooked quinoa, and half of the scallions. Mix in sauce until the dinner is coated. I like to use most, if not all of it. Serve topped with additional blue cheese and the remaining scallions.