Taco Salad

Ingredients

2 corn tortillas

1/2 cup refried beans (or fat free refried beans from a can)

1/2 cup salsa of your choice (my favorites are chipotle salsa, pico de gallo, and La Victoria brand's cilantro salsa)

1/2 cup chopped tomato

2 tbs chopped red onion

2 cups salad greens (your choice of lettuces, arugula, and spinach)

1/4 cup cilantro (optional)

Directions

1) Toast the corn tortillas in a nonstick skillet until cooked. I like to cut them up so I don't have to try to cut them up once they're underneath beans. Add them to a plate.

2) Heat up the refried beans and put them atop the corn tortillas.

3) Top with salsa and all other ingredients. Eat.

Easy Refried Beans

This is the latest way Sameer and I make refried beans from dry beans in the InstantPot. It's the best I've found so far. The amounts of the seasonings to replace the salsa might need tweaking because I currently eyeball it, but it can be corrected by taste after cooking the beans.

Ingredients

2 cups dry beans (black or pinto)

1/2 cup Mrs. Renfro's green salsa (OR 1 tsp onion powder, 1/2 tsp garlic powder, 1 tsp salt, 1 tbs pickled jalapeno slices)

Directions

1) Put all ingredients plus 5 cups water into InstantPot and cook for 30 minutes with natural release. (If you soaked your beans ahead of time, that's great, but not necessary.)

2) Drain most of the water and blend the beans with an immersion blender. Adjust seasoning as necessary. If you forgot to put in any seasoning at all (as I sometimes do), add it to taste now.

Red Chile Pesto

This is my revised recipe for the red chile pesto that goes with the grilled avocado enchiladas.  The chipotles in adobo are an estimate because I used three today and it was very spicy, so I would use one to start and see how that is before adding another.  I have made this pesto so many ways over the years because I forget to update my recipe and end up just making up a new one as I go.  As long as you adjust to taste, it's very forgiving.  Sameer always eats it until it's gone.

Ingredients
1/4 cup pine nuts, lightly toasted (I just move them around in a skillet over medium heat for a couple minutes until they start to smell toasty)
2 dried ancho chiles
2 dried guajillo chiles
4 cloves garlic
1 cup cilantro leaves
1/2 tsp salt
juice of 2 limes
2 tbs tomato sauce (I used an open jar of pizza sauce today.  I would use marinara or plain tomato puree or whatever I've got already in the fridge.)
1-2 chipotles in adobo

Directions

1) Remove seeds from the chiles and soak the chiles in hot water for an hour.

2) Put all ingredients in a food processor and blend.  Adjust to taste  If it needs more spice, add another chipotle in adobo.  If it's too spicy, add more tomato sauce.  If it's bitter or still too spicy after adding more tomato, add sugar 1/2 tsp at a time.

Copycat Taco Bell Quesadilla Sauce

I merged a few different copycat recipes to come up with the one below.  The primary one I worked from was this one from centslessdeals.com.  Now I make superior versions of the quesadillas from Taco Bell at home.  It's a great addition to a weekend "junk food dinner."

Ingredients

1 cup sour cream (I use low-fat because that's what I buy)

1/4 cup mayonnaise

3 tbs chopped mild pickled jalapenos 

2 tbs adobo sauce (from can of chipotles in adobo) or chipotle salsa

2 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp paprika

1/4 tsp salt

Directions

1. Combine all ingredients and stir well.  Will keep in sealed container in the refrigerator until the sour cream's best buy date, which is frequently upwards of a month.  This is why I keep this big batch on hand.

Mexican Potato Salad

This recipe comes from Dr. John McDougall's 10-day free meal plan.  I'm always looking for healthy Tex-Mex themed veggie sides, so I definitely plan to try this.

Ingredients
2 lbs red potatoes, cut into chunks
1 cup frozen corn kernels, thawed
1 large tomato, chopped
1 bunch scallions, chopped
1/2 cup salsa
2 tbs fresh lime juice
2 tbs fresh cilantro, chopped
Freshly ground black pepper

Directions

1. Place the potatoes in a large pot and cover with water.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes, or until just tender. 

2. Remove from heat, drain, and place potatoes in a large bowl.  Add the corn, tomatoes, and scallions.

3. Combine the salsa and lime juice.  Pour over salad and mix well.  Add cilantro and a few twists of pepper.  Serve immediately or chill.

Slow-Cooker Refried Beans

Ingredients
2 cups dried pinto beans
8 cups water
3 small (or 2 large) yellow onions, quartered
2 jalapeno chiles, seeded and roughly chopped

"Taco Spice"
2 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cumin
1 1/2 tsp chili powder

Directions

1. Put all ingredients into slow cooker.  Turn it on low and ignore it for about 8 hours.  Alternately, you can cook on high for about 3 hours.


2. Turn off slow cooker and drain as much water as you can from the beans.


3. Use an immersion blender to puree the cooked bean mixture.  If you don't have an immersion blender, wait until the beans cool to put the mixture in a blender in batches.


4. (Optional) Add a few tablespoons of salsa and/or low-fat plain yogurt to make a creamy bean dip.  Also tastes good as a spread in quesadillas and hot sandwiches.

Easy No-Oil Spanish Rice

I found this recipe on AllRecipes and made the healthier version below.  The oil does add something to the taste of cooked onion, so if I were making this for someone outside my family, I would use the oil as the original recipe says.  However, Sameer and Simran liked my version, which is substantially healthier and lower in fat.

Ingredients
2 tbs chopped onion
1 1/2 cups uncooked rice
2 cups low sodium vegetable broth
1 cup chunky salsa

Directions

1. Cook onion in a nonstick skillet over medium heat until tender, about 5 minutes.
2. Mix rice into skillet, stirring often until toasted lightly. Stir in broth and salsa. Reduce heat, cover and simmer 20 minutes, until liquid has been absorbed.

Vegan Enchiladas with Cilantro Avocado Cream Sauce

I recently found a food blog called OhSheGlows.com, which features tons of beautiful, healthy vegan dishes (even DIY almond milk and oat milk -- that's when I was really impressed) that follow pretty much exactly the food guidelines I want to achieve (whole grains, fruit, vegetables, nothing artificial, no added sugars -- basically everything the Fuhrman book says).  I haven't made any of them yet, but the website is beautiful and a lot of the dishes sound really good, so I have high hopes of finding some tasty new meals on there.  As I'm trying to make at least one new vegan dish each week now, the Vegan Enchiladas with Cilantro Avocado Cream Sauce sounded like something good to try. 

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped (~2 cups)
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 cup sweet potato, chopped (or zucchini)
• 1 bell pepper, chopped
• 2 handfuls spinach, chopped
• 1 can black beans (~2 cups), drained and rinsed (or about 1/2 cup dry beans, cooked)
• Enchilada sauce or Pasta sauce (about 2.5 cups)* see note (I plan to use red chile enchilada sauce, light on the chili powder for Simran's sake)
• 1 tbsp nutritional yeast (optional)
• 1.5 tsp ground cumin
• 1-2 tbsp fresh lime juice, to taste
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt, or to taste
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp chili powder, or to taste
• 4 whole grain tortilla wraps (I used Food for Life Ezekiel)
• Cilantro Avocado Cream Sauce, to pour on top (recipe below)
• Green onion & chopped cilantro, to garnish

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350F and grab a baking dish large enough for 4 enchiladas. Pre-cook the chopped sweet potato, by simmering it in a small pot of water for about 5-10 minutes until just tender. Do not overcook. Drain and set aside.

2. In a large skillet or pot, add 1 tbsp oil and bring to medium to low heat. Add in the chopped onion and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring often, until translucent. Add in garlic and reduce heat to low and cook for a couple more minutes. Now add the chopped pepper, pre-cooked sweet potato, drained black beans, and chopped spinach. Cook for about 5-7 more minutes on medium-low heat.

3. Now add in your enchilada or pasta sauce. Stir well, and add in your seasonings: nutritional yeast (optional), cumin, fresh lime juice, salt, garlic powder, chili powder- all to taste. Adjust seasonings if necessary. Stir well.

4. Scoop about 3/4-1 cup of the mixture onto the bottom of your casserole dish and spread out in a thin layer. Scoop about 1/2-3/4 cup of the mixture onto each tortilla and wrap, placing the fold down on the casserole dish. Repeat for the remaining 3 tortillas and leave a bit of filling left to spread over the top. Sprinkle with vegan cheese if preferred.

5. Bake tortillas at 350F for 18-20 minutes. Meanwhile, make your Cilantro cream sauce (see below). When enchiladas are cooked, remove from oven and pour the sauce over top. Garnish with chopped cilantro and green onion. Serve immediately. Makes 4 enchiladas.

Note: Depending on what kind of sauce you use, you will have to adjust the seasonings to taste. If you use pasta sauce, you will likely need more seasonings to achieve the taste desired.

Cilantro Avocado Cream Sauce

Ingredients

• 1 & 1/4 cup avocado flesh
• 2 tbsp water, or more as needed to thin out
• 2-3 tbsp lime juice, to taste
• 1 tsp apple cider vinegar (optional)
• 1 cup packed fresh cilantro
• 1 tsp kosher salt, to taste
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 3/4 tsp ground cumin
• Black pepper, to taste
• Red pepper flakes or cayenne pepper, to taste

Directions

1. In a food processor, process the avocado flesh and water until creamy. Now add in the rest of the ingredients and process until smooth and well blended. Use immediately for best results.

Red Chile Cheese Enchiladas

This is a simple enchilada recipe I found a few years ago on EatingWell.com.  The most work comes from making the sauce, but after Sameer tried it, he never wanted store-bought enchilada sauce again (I sort of regret that -- store-bought sauce might not taste as good, but it costs about a dollar rather than half an hour of your life).  The recipe below reflects my changes based on personal taste and what I can easily find at the store.  I always serve it with chopped raw yellow Spanish onion and chopped romaine lettuce on top.

Ingredients

Red Chile Sauce

• 2 teaspoons canola oil
• 1/2 cup minced white or yellow onion
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/4 cup chili powder
• 4 cups low-sodium vegetable broth 
• 1 tsp tomato paste or 1 tbs tomato sauce (I've even used marinara or pizza sauce in a pinch -- works fine)
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Enchiladas

• 1 15-ounce can vegetarian refried beans
• 2 tablespoons low-fat plain yogurt (Sour cream tastes slightly better but isn't as healthy.)
• 12 6-inch corn tortillas
• 2 cups shredded sharp Cheddar cheese, (8 ounces), divided
• 1/4 cup minced white or yellow onion, plus more for garnish
• 1 cup chopped romaine lettuce, for sprinkling on top

Directions

1. To prepare sauce: Heat oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add 1/2 cup onion; cook, stirring, until it begins to soften, about 1 minute. Stir in garlic and continue cooking until the onion is translucent and soft, about 2 minutes more. Stir in chili powder. Add broth, water, oregano and salt. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook until thickened and reduced by about one-third, about 20 minutes. (The sauce should be thick enough to coat a spoon lightly.  You can do this step in advance and keep the sauce in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.)
2. To prepare enchiladas: Preheat oven to 400°F. Coat a 7-by-11-inch (or similar-size 2-quart) baking dish with cooking spray.
3. Combine beans and yogurt in a small bowl.
4. Spread about 1/4 cup of the sauce in the baking dish. Arrange 4 tortillas in the dish, overlapping them to cover the bottom. Top with half the bean mixture, using the back of a spoon to spread it thin. Scatter 2/3 cup cheese and 2 tablespoons onion on top of the beans. Top with one-third of the remaining sauce, 4 tortillas, the remaining bean mixture, 2/3 cup cheese and the remaining 2 tablespoons onion. Spread half of the remaining sauce on top and cover with the remaining 4 tortillas. Top with the remaining sauce and the remaining 2/3 cup cheese.
5. Bake the enchiladas until hot and bubbling, 15 to 20 minutes. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving. Serve with additional minced onion and lettuce, if desired.

Fabulous Burritos

This recipe comes from Caldwell Esselstyn's Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease.

Ingredients
1 large onion, chopped (1 cup)
2 garlic cloves, chopped
vegetable broth or water
(2) 15 oz. cans pinto beans, drained and rinsed
(1-2) 16 oz. jars mild salsa or no-oil pasta sauce or a combination of the two
4 no-oil whole-wheat thin flat bread or nonfat tortillas (Esselstyn's recipes always recommend Ezekiel 4:9 by Food for Life brand, of which Whole Foods carries pretty much the entire product line)
2-3 tomatoes or 6-8 plum tomatoes, thinly sliced
chopped cilantro or parsley

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. In a non-stick saucepan, stir-fry onion and garlic in enough vegetable broth or water to cover until softened.

3. Add pinto beans and pasta sauce and mash (a potato masher works well), then cook for a few minutes. (If you want to expand this filling mixture, you could add leftover rice, corn, or other vegetables).

4. Put enough pasta sauce in a baking pan just to cover the bottom. Spread each tortila or piece of flat bread with bean mixture, roll up like a sausage, and place in the pan, nestling the burritos together. Cover rolled burritos with salsa, pasta sauce, or a combination of the two.

5. Place sliced tomatoes on top of the burritos.

6. Bake for 30 minutes, until bubbly, or more, if you like your burritos crispy. Sprinkle with chopped cilantro or parsley.

(Now that I've read through the entire recipe, this sounds horrific.  It sounds like weird bastardized enchiladas more than burritos anyway, and I don't understand why there is pasta sauce and no seasonings at all, such as cumin or chili powder.  My version won't resemble this recipe so much as what Sameer ends up ordering whenever we eat at Qdoba.  I'll make a mixture of black and pinto beans, cooked in the slow cooker along with garlic and onion and taco spice.  I don't plan to cook the burritos afterward or use pasta sauce of any kind.  I do want to make some fresh pico de gallo since I think it adds a lot, and I'll probably throw some sort of green lettuce and maybe some of the fire-roasted corn from my freezer too.  And avocado slices, or full on guacamole.  Remove the avocado and the salt from my version and it would be Esselstyn-approved -- and still sound less weird.)

Fresh Veggie Tacos

This veggie soft taco recipe is based on the veggie tacos Chili's used to have on their menu in the late '90s / early '00s.  I've made a lot of changes over the years based on personal preferences (mostly Sameer's personal preferences) and availability of fresh ingredients.  Adjust to your own tastes.  This dish can easily be made vegan by omitting the cheese or using a soy cheese product.

Ingredients
4 whole wheat flour tortillas (or whatever flour tortillas you can find) in a smallish size
Fresh guacamole
4 oz. shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup sprouts (preferably alfalfa or broccoli)
6 oz. fresh white mushrooms, sliced
2 tomatoes, diced
2 handfuls lettuce (preferably romaine or green leaf), shredded

Amendments I've made over the years:  Due to Sameer's strong dislike for mushrooms, we often replace them with Morningstar Chik'n Meal Starter strips (freezer section) sauteed in a tablespoon of olive oil or vegetarian refried beans seasoned with onion and taco spice.  In the frequent event that none of the available sprouts look appealing (also when I was pregnant and told not to eat sprouts), we omit them.  I do think they add a lot to the flavor and texture when good ones are available though.  I also prefer mushrooms over the other alternatives mentioned above.

Directions

1. Fill tortilla with desired ingredients, fold, and eat like a taco.

Sweet Potato - Lime Salad

I found this recipe in Caldwell Esselstyn's Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease.  I don't have high hopes for it because it sounds kind of weird (maybe I'll taste it before adding any vinegar), but I'm always looking for more ways to get Simran (and Sameer and me) to eat colorful vegetables. 

Ingredients
3 large sweet potatoes and/or yams, cut into bite-sized pieces (4 cups)
1 bunch green onions, chopped (about 1/2 cup)
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped (1 cup)
1/2 sweet onion, chopped
4 ribs celery, chopped (about 1 cup)
2 tbs balsamic vinegar
juice and zest of 1-2 limes (about 2 tbs of juice, or two taste)
1/2 cup chopped parsley or cilantro

Directions

1. Steam sweet potatoes 10-12 minutes, until tender but still firm, or bake at 400 degrees until just tender. Peel and cube. Place in a bowl.

2. Add green onions, red pepper, onions, celery, vinegar, lime juice and zest, and parsley/cilantro. Mix.

Nachos (the good way)

Sameer and I have been talking about nachos for a couple of weeks now.  There is a place in New Hampshire near the Mount Washington Hotel called Fabyan's Station where they serve nachos loaded with sour cream, pickled jalapenos, guacamole, and about a brick-worth of melted cheddar.  We ate them every day that we stayed at the Mount Washington about a year and a half ago and have talked about them weirdly often ever since. 

Since neither of us really thought the tabouli sounded too filling and we don't want to try to feed Simran nachos (or watch her watch us eat them with her enormous, hungry eyes), we decided this week to resurrect Junk Food Dinner.  Before Simran was born, we had Junk Food Dinner about once a week, usually on Friday or Saturday, and it generally consisted of cheese-laden foods and/or numerous appetizers (typically alongside some kind of green salad or vegetable so as not to feel ill afterward -- it was still healthier than most restaurant meals).  Tonight we'll have tabouli salad and no-tahini hummus with Simran and then, after she is in bed, we'll eat Fabyan's Station-style nachos followed by Cadbury Cream Eggs, drink soda (another thing we haven't had in months), and watch TV.  This is what Friday nights are for.

Ingredients
8 oz. yellow corn tortilla chips
2 small tomatoes, seeded and chopped
16 oz. cheddar or cheddar-based cheese blend, shredded (I'll be using full-fat sharp cheddar and colby jack.)
2 tbs sliced pickled jalapenos (or more or less, based on personal preference -- Sameer and I will probably keep the jar out and keep adding more as we eat)
sour cream
fresh guacamole

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

2. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.  Spread chips out over baking sheet.  Sprinkle cheese over the top.  Top with another layer of tortilla chips and then cheese.

3. Bake until cheese is melted and bubbly, about 5 minutes.

4. Remove from oven and top with tomatoes and pickled jalapenos (and any other toppings you like).  Serve with sides of sour cream and guacamole.  Also maybe a fork.

Black Beans and Rice

Another recipe from Caldwell Esselstyn's Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease.

Ingredients
2 cups brown rice, uncooked
3 15-oz cans black beans
2-3 tomatoes, chopped (2-3 cups)
1 Vidalia onion, 1 bunch green onions, or any other variety of onion, chopped
1 16-oz package frozen corn, thawed under hot water
1-2 red, yellow, or green bell peppers, seeded and chopped (1-2 cups)
1 cup grated or matchstick carrots
1 8-oz can water chestnuts
1 bunch cilantro, chopped
1 bunch arugula, chopped
low-sodium tamari or Bragg Liquid Aminos
salsa

Directions

1. Cook brown rice following package directions

2. Heat beans either in their liquid or, drained and rinsed, in a little water (I'll be using my slow cooker on dried beans instead).

3. Put all chopped vegetables in individual dishes.

4. To serve, start with a base of rice, add beans, and pile your plate high with veggies. Top it all with salsa or a sprinkle of low-sodium tamari or Bragg Liquid Aminos.

[Edited 6/23/13:  This was fantastic with the addition of one ingredient Esselstyn wouldn't approve of -- fresh avocado slices.  Since no one in my household is trying to reverse advanced heart disease, I think it's a reasonable addition to an otherwise non-fat, vegan, high-fiber, nutrient-dense dinner that actually tastes good and can fill you up.  Make sure to use a good salsa -- I like my grocery store's generic organic garlic salsa.]

Black Bean Cakes Supreme!

This is yet another recipe from Caldwell Esselstyn's Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease.

Ingredients
Bean Cakes:
6 15-oz cans black beans, drained and rinsed
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped (1 cup)
3 green onions, chopped
2 carrots, grated
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp chili powder
2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 cup salsa
Topping:
1 16-oz pkg frozen corn or kernels cut from 6 cobs
3 Vidalia onions, thinly sliced and slices cut in half
1 16-oz jar salsa
1 bag spinach
1/2 cup chopped cilantro

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Put beans in a large bowl. Add remaining bean cake ingredients, stirring to combine. Mash mixture well, using a potato masher or your hands.

2. Dump on a board or countertop and flatten into a circle about 1/2 inch thick. With a glass or biscuit cutter, form round cakes and put on a baking sheet.

3. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 20 minutes. Remove foil and bake another 10 minutes, until tops are browned.

4. Roast corn on a baking sheet until browned. Put in a bowl.

5. Roast onions until browned. Put in a bowl.  (I'm combining steps 4 and 5 -- whichever browns first gets browned.)

6. Put bowls of corn, onions, bean cakes, salsa, spinach, and cilantro on the table. Start with spinach, then add a bean cake or two, roasted corn, roasted onions, and top with salsa and cilantro and, if you want, avocado.

Tortilla Pie

This recipe comes from Caldwell Esselstyn's Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease.

Ingredients
5-6 medium no-oil corn tortillas
2-3 15-oz. cans black beans, drained and rinsed (I plan to just make a big pot of slow-cooker black beans)
2 16-oz. jars salsa (mild or hotter, according to taste)
1 16-oz. package frozen corn
1 large onion, finely chopped (1 cup), and stir-fried until limp
1 large red or green bell pepper, seeded and chopped (1 cup)
1 large tomato, chopped (1 cup)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Line bottom of a large baking dish with half of tortillas. You will need to cut or tear some in order to fit the pan.

3. Spread beans over tortillas, then add half the salsa, the corn, the stir-fried onions, peppers, tomato, and another layer of tortillas.  Top with the rest of the salsa. Use extra salsa if necessary.

4. Bake for 60 minutes, uncovered.

[Edited 3/6/13: I intentionally bought a fancy garlicky salsa I like for this since I knew it was the primary flavorant, and I only used one jar.  This was pretty good as is, but when I ate it with fresh avocado on top, it was fantastic.]

Black Bean Nacho Pizza

This recipe is from EatingWell.com.  I've made some changes below, such as using a slightly different whole wheat pizza dough recipe and using an oven instead of a grill.

Ingredients

• 1 cup canned black beans, rinsed (I have dried black beans cooking in the slow-cooker today instead.)
• 1/2 cup chopped jarred roasted red peppers
• 1 medium clove garlic, quartered
• 1 tablespoon chili powder (This amount made me choke and cough.  I had to add a lot more beans to counteract it. Next time I'll use 1 tsp to start and add more to taste.)
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• Yellow cornmeal, for dusting
• 1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese (I'll be using a mixture of pepper jack and cheddar.)
• 2 medium plum tomatoes, diced
• 4 medium scallions, thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup chopped pitted ripe black olives
• 2 tablespoons chopped pickled jalapeños
• Whole wheat pizza dough

Directions

1. Prepare Whole Wheat Pizza Dough up to a day in advance (it takes over an hour to prepare, including rising time).

2. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).  Roll out prepared dough on a lightly floured surface.  Sprinkle cornmeal on a pizza pan (to create a non-stick surface) and lay dough on top of it.

3. Place beans, peppers, garlic, chili powder and salt in a food processor and process until smooth, scraping down the sides as needed.

4. Apply the mixture from the food processor like a sauce. Add cheese, tomatoes, scallions, olives and pickled jalapeños. Bake in preheated oven 16-20 minutes, depending on thickness of crust (I prefer a thin crust, using half the dough and putting the other half in the freezer for a later date).

Seven Layer Tortilla Pie

I started making this recipe years ago and haven't made it in awhile.  It's really good.  The original recipe is from AllRecipes.com, and it makes good use of leftover tortillas and salsa, of which I have plenty.

Ingredients
2 (15 oz) cans pinto beans, drained and rinsed
1 cup salsa, divided
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbs fresh cilantro, chopped
1 (15 oz) can black beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 cup chopped tomatoes
7 (8 inch) flour tortillas
2 cups shredded reduced-fat cheddar
salsa & sour cream (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).

2. In a large bowl, mash pinto beans. Stir in 3/4 cup salsa and garlic.

3. In a separate bowl, mix together 1/4 cup salsa, cilantro, black beans and tomatoes.

4. Place 1 tortilla in a pie plate or tart dish (or a cookie sheet will do). Spread 3/4 cup pinto bean mixture over tortilla to within 1/2 inch of edge. Top with 1/4 cup cheese, and cover with another tortilla. Spread with 2/3 cup black bean mixture, and top with 1/4 cup cheese. Repeat layering twice. Cover with remaining tortilla, and spread with remaining pinto bean mixture and cheese.

5. Cover with foil, and bake in preheated oven for about 40 minutes. Cut into wedges, and serve with salsa and sour cream.   

Quinoa in Color

I found this recipe in Joel Fuhrman's book Disease-Proof Your Child.  It sounds a little bland, but it's important to me that I cook at least one dinner per week for Sameer and me that is something I would actually feed Simran too.  She's going to be eating the same food as we do really soon.  I plan to add some cilantro to this dish for flavor and color.  Avocado slices added on top would probably be good too.

Ingredients
1 cup rinsed quinoa
2 cups water (I might consider using low-sodium vegetable broth for added flavor.)
1/4 cup red peppers, chopped
1/4 cup green peppers, chopped
1/4 cup orange peppers, chopped
1/4 cup yellow peppers, chopped
1/4 cup red onions, chopped
1/4 cup carrots, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1 can (16 oz) organic pinto or adzuki beans (I plan to make some slow-cooker beans this week from dried pinto beans and will just use a pound of those.)

Directions
Mix all ingredients in a pot, except the beans. Bring to a boil and then turn down heat to simmer for about 15 minutes, until most of the liquid is absorbed. Turn off heat and add the can of beans.

Red Beans & Rice

Since Simran has her 9-month checkup this afternoon, I want to make something quick and easy for dinner tonight.  If I do all the chopping in advance, I can throw red beans and rice together in under 30 minutes.

This is an easy, healthy, tasty, inexpensive recipe that provides plenty of leftovers for lunches (it keeps well in the fridge for several days).  I make it regularly.  The original recipe is from Robert Irvine of FoodNetwork.  My version has a couple of minor changes, like omitting the onion powder (made it gritty) and replacing the chopped garlic and salt with garlic salt (faster and less effort).  Also, the first time I made this I didn't have hot sauce, so I ended up using several tablespoons of mild La Victoria brand taco sauce.  I've also made it with just plain hot sauce.  Sameer's and my favorite version includes a healthy dose of both the mild and "brava" versions of La Victoria's taco sauce.  It adds more flavor without too much heat.  (Note:  You can make this dish vegan by replacing the butter with olive oil.)

Ingredients

• 1 large red onion, diced
• 1 stalk celery, diced
• 1 green bell pepper, stem and seeds removed and small diced (or use half green and half red, like I do -- it just looks more festive that way)
• 2 (1-pound) cans red kidney beans
• 1 teaspoon garlic salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon hot sauce (I like La Victoria's "brava" taco sauce best.)
• 2 tablespoons mild taco sauce
• 2 1/2 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
• 1 cup white rice
• 1 tablespoon butter (replace with olive oil to make this dish vegan)
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh cilantro leaves (optional)

Directions
Heat butter over medium heat in a large saucepan. Saute onion, celery, and bell pepper until tender. Stir in kidney beans, garlic salt, pepper, and hot and mild sauces. Reduce heat to low and let mixture simmer slowly while you cook the rice.

Bring the broth to a boil and stir in rice. Return to a boil, reduce heat to low, cover and cook for 20 minutes without removing the lid. Remove from heat and let stand for 5 minutes.

Fold rice and beans gently together and transfer to a serving dish. Serve garnished with cilantro.