Black Bean Recipe Roundup

I have talked before about Meat Free Mondays

and about substituting vegetarian meals into your weekly diet.

Not only are beans a healthy choice but they are packed with proteins and vitamins.

Did I also mention, canned or dried, beans are SUPER CHEAP!!!

(PS.  They even sell the Mr Goudas brand at  the Dollartree now...WIN!)

Just to help you out...

I have a black bean roundup for you!

I usually make a fried black bean dish that totally reminds Ches and I of being in Costa Rica.

Original black bean recipe,

Burritos and Southwest Soup:

Here

My newest recipe was adding the black bean recipe and serving it quesadilla-style.

Plain Greek yoghurt for the sour cream.

Chopped fresh tomatoes, grated local cheese, our home made salsa and some of last year's pickled jalapenos between two flour tortillas.  Place on side down in a frying pan with a bit of oil.

Fry one side and then flip to grill the other side.

Slice and serve while piping hot.

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Below is the roundup of more recipes I've already posted on the blog:

Burritos and Vegetarian Nachos

Here

A Creamy Black Bean Dip:

Here

Other Bean Recipes:

Here

A couple of Mean Bean Soup Recipes:

Here

2 Mexi Options for a Meat Free Monday

Every now and again I like to offer up options for people who are trying to curb their meat intake.

I have previously done posts about Meatfree Mondays, 

an initiative spearheaded by Sir Paul McCartney and his daughters.

If you are looking for the nutritional info on beans (or beans and rice together) - check out this link to my previous post.

Here is another in that series of posts:

Meat Free Burritos

I have posted this recipe before - but its so good, I'm posting it again.

I make a bean and rice dish that was inspired by something husband and I loved in Costa Rica.

Basically its black beans cooked in a little oil with lemon juice, cumin, chili powder, cayenne, coriander, onions and S&P to taste.

Add in rice (I use a mixture of wild and brown rices) and simmer a bit more.

I add the beans and rice mixture to the wraps and top with spinach, tomatoes, 

sweet bell peppers, shredded cheese and plain Greek yogurt.

(Previously I have shown eating these with ranch dressing - but the Greek yogurt is awesome too)

What you get is a delicious, healthy and filling meal!

Pretty cheap too, if you happen to grow yer own veggies!
Beans and rice keep forever (in the proper conditions) so they really are a great investment for your grocery dollar, whether they be canned or dried.


I use the same bean and rice mixture in another dish...

Vegetarian Nachos

I take the same beans and rice mixture and scoop them into the center of a dinner plate.

Surround the scoops with nachos chips (shown here is Tostitos Cantina chips)

I sprinkled the last of my Roma tomatoes, chopped, and some sweet bell peppers, chopped.

Homemade salsa gets spooned around too.

Grated cheese (marble cheddar and hot pepper brick cheeses) on top of the whole mess and bake at 400 degrees C until cheese is melty!

I've been able to find these chips for quite a good deal, so the overall price on these nachos is still way below pub or restaurant rates.

ENJOY!

What have you been making meat-free these days?

Pizza! 3 ways to make it for the whole family....

So, like most people, we LOVE pizza.

What I don't like, is not knowing what is really going into my pizza.

I also don't like the price...

and the fact that we live in the country and can't get more than 1 company to deliver to us!

So I decided to pull out the ol' bread maker and stop whining.

(You can still make this recipe without the bread maker...but its more manual work)

With the bread maker, it really was easier than I would have expected!

Here is the dough recipe:

3/4 cup plus 1 tbsp water (80 degrees F, 27 degrees C)

2 tbsp veg oil

2 cups flour

1/2 tsp sugar

1/2 tsp salt

2 tsp active dry yeast (or 1 1/2 tsp bread machine yeast)

I can't stress enough how important it is to follow the directions exactly!

When you use a bread machine, you have to add the ingredients in exactly the manner they tell you.

step 1.  add water, veg oil to bread pan

step 2. add flour, sugar, salt to pan.  Tap ingredients to settle.  Level ingredients and push flour mixture to the corners of the pan. 

step 3.  Make a "well" in the center of the dry ingredients and add yeast.

step 4.  lock pan into bread machine, close cover and set timer to "dough".

THAT'S IT!

The bread machine now does the work of mixing and punching the dough.

I decided to double the above recipe and make a few kinds of pizzas to show you the variety of flavours you can acheive by making your own pizza!

Of course there is the traditional cheese, sauce and pepperoni pizza.
I make this one for all of us, but mainly wee Master Owen.
Owen is 5 yrs old and adventurous doesn't describe his taste buds.

This one is by far the easiest.  Brush on sauce, add pepperoni slices, top with
shredded mozzerella cheese and bake for 15 mins.  Voila!

Noah is 11 yrs old and is starting to expand his taste buds these days.

He is much more receptive to a slice of spinach and feta pizza than Owen.

For this one you have to make the stuff in 2 stages.

Fry onions and garlic in a bit of oil.

Add huge fists of spinach and simmer until wilted.

Artfully place the whole mess on a pizza dough already brushed with sauce.

Crumble feta on top and add some shredded mozzerella cheese if you wish.

If you skip the cheese, this qualifies as vegetarian or good for Meatfree Mondays.

Bake for 15mins and enjoy!

Stemming from my years in Toronto, I grew to love non-traditional pizzas.

There was a fantastic place in Kensington Market that served all kinds.

Gluten-free, dairy-free and definitely not taste-free!

In honour of those days, I made a potato, carmelized onion and rosemary pizza.

(I also had loads of rosemary still outside and needed to do something with it...)

If you skip the cheese, this also qualifies as vegetarian or good for Meatfree Mondays.

This recipe called for the dough to be grilled...which in hindsite I should have done.

This one still turned out fine, but I can see it should have been crispier.

Wash and pat dry some potatoes.

Pierce and nuke for 1-2 mins.

Slice into 5mm slices and set aside.

Carmelize onions in some oil.

Brush dough with oil and fry for 2 mins on one side.  Then flip and add potatoes & onions.

Top with fresh rosemary and parmesan cheese.  S & P to taste.

(recipe called for fontina cheese, but either cheese works well)

Grill in oil on a flat grill and serve!

There are 3 excellent recipes for pizza made in your home, but the list can go on and on.
The main ingredients for the dough don't cost a lot if you space them out over several grocery trips.  Best part is, once you have the stuff...it seems to last for a long time.  (even the yeast lasts if kept in the fridge)

Stock up and have homemade pizzas all winter long...
without worrying if the pizza guy will make it to your door in the snow!

Baked Flying Saucers - Mexican Style!

Its been a while since I did a recipe post...

In case you are wondering, I have been posting those all to my facebook page and group.

(It just seemed to happen like that this summer)

But I promise to stop that and even things out a bit!

We raided my mother in law's garden recently,

grabbing stuff that was just finishing up.

Like more flying saucer squash!

Ideally you want to pick those squashes when they are fist sized,

but like zucchinis, if you blink, they will grow to enormous proportions!

What you see above is ONE paddypan squash!

We halved it and scooped out the seeds and inner flesh.

What you get left over looks kinda like when you scoop out a pumpkin!

You can dry these seeds and roast them in butter and salt just like pumpkin seeds,

but we rinsed the seeds and dried them off for planting next year.

In a frying pan, we added cooked brown/wild rice, black beans drained and rinsed, roma tomatoes chopped and seeded, yellow tomatoes chopped and seeded, pressed garlic, 1 chopped white onion and spices.  The spices include cumin, cayenne powder, S & P to taste.

Cook off the mixture until the moisture is all but gone.

Fill the squashes, top with shredded cheese and bake at 350 degrees C for 30-40 mins.

Each half served one.

AMAZING!

Super healthy and filling for these cool fall evenings.

This dish also qualifies for Meat-Free Monday!

This dish is easily a meal in itself but you can serve it with a small green salad or cucumber/tomato salad.

I was STUFFED with just the squash...(pun intended)

Anyway, check out my facebook group or page (link beside this post)

for more tips, tricks, recipes and photos from other readers and their garden creations!

Enjoy this wonderful fall!

2 Meat-free Recipes Just for You!

Although I don't grow black beans, they are something I really love to use in my cooking.  Especially since I've been trying to integrate vegetarian meals into my famil diet.  Luck for me, our home grown tomatoes and black beans are wonderful eating companions!

In light of the whole "Meat-free Mondays" thing I mentioned in a previous post, I thought I would add a few of my favorite dishes using both black beans and the tomatoes we grew last year and froze.

For the record, black beans are a great source of vitamins and nutrients.  The website called the world's healthiest foods (or whfoods.com) says "The amazing protein-plus-fiber content of black beans. From a single, one-cup serving of black beans you get nearly 15 grams of fiber (well over half of the Daily Value and the same amount consumed by the average U.S. adult in one entire day of eating) and 15 grams of protein (nearly one third of the Daily Value and equivalent to the amount in 2 ounces of a meat like chicken or a fish like salmon). You won't find this outstanding protein-fiber combination in fruit, vegetables, grains, meats, dairy products, nuts and seeds, or seafood. The almost magical protein-fiber combination in legumes--including black beans--explains important aspects of their health benefits for the digestive tract, the blood sugar regulatory system, and the cardiovascular system."

First we have a big feed of vegetarian burritos!

Burritos are an easy and quick way to feed your family healthy, nutritious food.

I fry up some onions and garlic in a frying pan.  I add black beans, lemon juice, red pepper flakes, chili powder and cumin.  S & P to taste.  Then I add some pre-cooked brown and wild rice.  (I always keep some cooked rice in the fridge in case)  FYI beans and rice served together make up a complete protein!  Livestrong.com says "Beans and rice combined provide all of the B vitamins except B12, including thiamine (41 percent DV), vitamin B6 and niacin (23 percent DV each) and 8 to 9 percent of thiamine and pantothenic acid. Beans supply 230 micrograms (mcg) of folate; rice has 128 mcg, for a huge total of 90 percent of the recommended daily value."Read more: http://www.livestrong.com/article/96675-nutrition-beans-rice/#ixzz1okGgEzC6

Then comes the fun part!  I lay out the ingredients in small bowls so it feels like a buffet!  (Plus i don't have to build everyone's burrito...)  I shred cheese, chop lettuce and spinach, chop tomatoes, chop orange peppers (thats just what I had on hand, you can use any flavour or colour).  I use white tortilla wraps (because I find the whole wheat kind breaks easily)  I also set out some home made salsa and ranch dressing for those who want it.

My husband Ches made home made salsa back in September when all of our veggies were ripening at the same time (or so it felt like it).  Everything went into the salsa and placed in jars. 

Next you fill the wrap and roll it.  Bibs may be required but at least you'll know its all good stuff.

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Another recipe I made was Southwest soup.

Take a large pot and add onions and garlic with a bit of oil.  Simmer until translucent. 

Add a dozen or a dozen and a half of frozen tomates (we had both red and yellow tomatoes).

Add some water and simmer until the tomatoes are all thawed.  I always add a tsp of white sugar to lessen the bitterness of the tomatoes.  Then I add black beans (I use canned and then rinse thoroughly) and corn (frozen from last fall), as well as lemon or lime juice.  Next you add the yummy spices that give it its southwestern flavour.  Chili powder and cayenne...1/4 tsp each or more depending on your taste.  Or go the easy route and add taco seasoning...but you can't control the salt as easily with this method.

You can simmer this soup all day if you like and serve with corn bread (aka johnny cake) or sprinkle with bits of seasoned taco chips.

So now you can enjoy some meatless alternatives that really don't feel like alternatives.

Try something meat free today! (start planning for this Monday...)

And as always, check out my facebook page for Small Purse, Big Garden...it has loads more recipes, photos, links and helpful tips for growing and cooking your own food, living green and living a bit more gently on this earth.

Beans are not just musical...

I am not fully a vegetarian..but I do love a lot of vegetarian recipes.  I have an open mind when it comes to other concepts and cultures of diets.  I've tried all sorts of foods in my travels.  Many things I would never repeat...but the point is to taste without fear and tread onwards.

I also do no subscribe to any celebrity based diets.

Now that's been said...I want to mention a concept that isn't new...

and is heavily promoted by Sir Paul McCartney.

MEAT-FREE MONDAYS

http://www.meatfreemondays.com/

Ok, vegetarianism isn't a new thing...but this concept talks about trying it out for one day of the week. 

I try to impliment this as frequently as I can.  It's not always possible with a busy schedule and a bunch of hungry boys (Hubbie included)

This week I tried to make my first bean patties.  If you follow my blog, you'll recognize the beans below from my broccoli quiche post.  They are in fact the same beans!  The first attempt at blind baking my crust failed.  I added far too much butter.  The beans could not be reused, because they had essentially been deep fried in grease!  Hubbie soaked them and boiled them one night.  Once cooled, he placed them in the fridge for future use.  I decided to put them to use in the dish below! 

First off I took the beans that had already been soaked and boiled.  I mashed them with a potato masher, but this task would go a lot easier if our food processor was working!

Once the beans were mashed to a granual texture...

I added garlic powder, parmesan cheese, rosemary, S & P to taste. 

I know this is suppose to be meat free...but I did add a beaten egg.  The recipe called for salsa...but I was not in a salsa mood.

Next step is to take the mixture and blend well. 

Using your hands, press the mixture into patty form!

Fry up in hot veg oil and serve!

They aren't pretty, but man did they taste great!!!

I served my patty on a bed of greens and a dollop of lemony mayonnaise.  (I know, again with the egg products!)  I give this a 50/50 for vegetarianism...and a full 100% for taste!

As I said, I do try to make vegetarian dishes for the familly at least once a  week. 

Try it!