Creamy Bean and Green Chile Enchiladas

I have been craving Mexican food for a few days and kept mulling over what I wanted. I decided on enchiladas. Mine usually turn out dry and I wanted these moist. I wanted an almost chile-relleno-like texture. I considered steaming them like tamales, but then decided against it. But that's the moistness level I was going for. I also wanted something meatless. And usually I don't eat cheese or sour cream, but I was feeling like treating myself. So, these aren't vegan, but they are meatless and I think they tasted pretty darn good. My kids asked for seconds and thirds (Finn called it lasagna). Little did they know they were eating something containing zucchini and beans! At any rate, like usual, feel free to tweak to your preferences.


16 corn tortillas
canola oil, for frying
1/2 sweet onion, diced fine
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 zucchini, shredded fine
1/2 teaspoon coriander
1 teaspoon cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
few dashes cayenne pepper
4-ounce can diced green chiles
2 green onions, diced fine
1/2 cup green chile sauce
15-ounce can white cannellini beans, drained
15-ounce can pinto beans, drained
2 cups sour cream, divided
2/3 can Campbells' cheddar cheese soup
1 bag shredded colby-jack cheese


In nonstick skillet, heat oil and cook tortillas in it on each side until browned (about 20 seconds per side). Set aside.

In same large nonstick skillet, saute onion, garlic and zucchini until onion is translucent and mixture loses its juices. Add coriander, cumin, seasoning salt, pepper and cayenne pepper. Add diced green chiles, green onions and green chile sauce. Saute over medium-high heat until heated through and incorporated, about 3 minutes.

In large mixing bowl, mash cannellini and pinto beans with potato masher until creamy. Add 1 cup sour cream, cheddar cheese soup, colby jack cheese and 2/3 of chile mixture in skillet. Mix to incorporate. Can add more seasoning salt, pepper and/or cumin, to taste.

In small mixing bowl, mix 1 cup sour cream and remaining 1/3 chile mixture. Mix well.

Assembly: In 9x13 pan, spread 1/2 of the sour cream/chile mixture on bottom of pan. Take one of the tortillas and spread about 1/4 cup of bean/sour cream/cheese mixture in the middle, then roll up and place seam side down in prepared pan. Repeat until the pan is full. Spread remaining sour cream/chile mixture over enchiladas. Then cover with remaining colby jack cheese.

Cover with foil and bake at 335 F for 40 minutes. Take the foil off and broil on high for 3 minutes, or until cheese is browned and bubbly. Serve with chopped lettuce, sour cream, guacamole and salsa, if desired. Also, makes a great accompaniment to this Spanish Rice.

Vegetarian Sloppy Joes


I love sloppy joes. I always have. And I was not about to stop eating them just because I resolved to eat less meat. So, I played around with sloppy joe mixes and sauces, rice and beans, and came up with a pretty good alternative to the meat version. As always, feel free to substitute and tweak according to your tastes and/or what you have on hand.

1 15-ounce can red kidney beans, drained
1-15 ounce can pinto beans or black beans, drained
1 cup cooked brown rice
1 packet sloppy joe seasoning mix or 1 can sloppy joe sauce
1 can tomato paste (if using seasoning mix)

In a medium sauce pan, warm the tomato paste, water and seasoning mix according to package directions. Or, pour sloppy joe sauce into pan, if using that instead. Mix in the beans and rice, heat through and serve on whole wheat buns. Alternative cooking method: crock pot.

Easy peasy!

Note: I prefer homemade sloppy joes, rather than using flavoring packets, but I have yet to find a homemade recipe that I like. So, if you have a good one, please let me know. I would love to try it.

Pecan-Crusted Trout

This was so good. I felt like I was eating at a gourmet restaurant. And it was easy to make, too. I used halibut instead of trout and it was great. The notes also mention you could use cod or catfish as well as halibut.

1/4 cup pecan halves

1/4 cup panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)

1 Tablespoon olive oil, divided

4 (6-ounce) rainbow trout fillets, halved

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Place pecans in mini chopper or food processor; pulse until pecans are finely ground. Combine pecans and panko in a shallow dish. Heat 1 1/2 teaspoons oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle fish evenly with salt and pepper. Dredge tops of fish in nut mixture, pressing gently to adhere. Place half of fish, breading side down, in pan; cook 4 minutes or until browned. Turn fish over; cook 4 minutes of until fish flakes easily with a fork or until desired degree of doneness. Remove fish from pan; cover and keep warm. Repeat procedure with remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons oil and remaining fish. Yield: 4 servings.

recipe from Cooking Light, October 2009, page 84 (subscribe here)

Chickpea Croquettes with Greek Salad Topping

These tasted alot like falafels, but were very tasty in their own right. I had some leftover dill yogurt sauce from making falafels earlier in the week, so I served them with that instead of the Greek Salad Topping and the flavors went really well together. I froze the leftovers to eat for lunches during the week. They're almost like chickpea pancakes, if you can imagine. I liked the soft texture of the cooked batter mixed with the firm, dense texture of the chickpeas.

Topping

1 cucumber, quartered and sliced (1 cup)

1 cup cherry tomatoes, quartered

2 green onions, chopped

2 Tbs. lemon juice

1 Tbs. olive oil

1/2 cup crumbled low-fat vegan feta cheese, optional

Croquettes

1 cup chickpea flour

2 tsp. ground cumin

1 tsp. chili powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1 15-0unce can chickpeas, rinsed and drained

4 green onions, chopped (1/2 cup)

1/2 cup diced red bell pepper

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

1 Tbs. lemon juice

1 Tbs. olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced (2 tsp.)

To make topping: Toss together cucumber, tomatoes, green onions, lemon juice and oil in bowl. Gently stir in feta crumbles. Season with salt and pepper, if desired, and set aside.

To make croquettes: Whisk together chickpea flour, cumin, chili powder, and salt in bowl. Whisk in 3/4 cup hot water. Stir in remaining ingredients, and season with salt and pepper, if desired. Coat nonstick skillet with cooking spray; heat over medium heat. Scoop four 1/4-cup dollops of chickpea mixture into skillet, and reduce heat to medium-low. Cook 3 to 4 minutes, or until golden. Flip with spatula, and cook 3 to 4 minutes more. Repeat with remaining chickpea mixture. Serve each Croquette topped with 1/4 cup topping.

recipe from Vegetarian Times, October 2009, page 32 (yes, I'm a subscriber)

Greek Pasta with Spinach, Olives, Tomatoes and White Beans

Greek Pasta with Spinach, Olives, Tomatoes and White Beans

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Greek Pasta with Spinach, Olives, Tomatoes and White Beans

Ingredients:
2-3 Tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped coarsely
3-4 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
3 (14.5 ounce) cans plain diced tomatoes
1 (14.5 ounce) can small white beans, rinsed well and drained
1 cup olives, pitted (canned okay)
black pepper to taste
About 4-5 ounces (about 4 cups) fresh spinach
1 lb penne or other similar pasta

1/2 to 3/4 cup (3-4 ounces) crumbled or cubed feta cheese

Directions:
1) Saute onion and garlic in olive oil in a large pan over medium-high heat for 4-5 minutes, until tender.
2) Add tomatoes, olives and beans, bring to boil, then reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes while the pasta cooks.
3) Add the spinach to the sauce, combine well, and continue simmering for 1-2 minutes. Let spinach wilt a bit, but not too much.
4) Place cooked pasta into shallow plates or bowls, add sauce on top of the pasta. Crumble feta cheese on top.

Serves 5-6.

We had this tonight, it was super easy and good. We ate it over quinoa macaroni which is actually pretty good. Paired with a greek salad it was perfect. Romaine lettuce, tomatoes, olives, red onion, marinated artichoke hearts, feta cheese, olive oil, basil, and lemon.
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Creamy Breakfast Oatmeal (Rice Cooker)

I usually have oatmeal for breakfast and I like steel cut oats best, but they take a long time to cook, plus they leave my stovetop super messy from all the bubbles spurting out. So I thought I would try some cooked in a rice cooker. They were so good. I just put them in my rice cooker and while I was feeding my kids, they cooked. It was so nice to have a hot breakfast with such little effort. I didn't add the dates or syrup and I used water instead of milk and they turned out great. It would be good served with chopped walnuts and any dried fruit (cranberries, dates, apricots).

2/3 cup steel cut oats
1 2/3 cups milk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 pinch fine sea salt
2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
1/2 cup chopped dates

Place all ingredients, except dates, in cooker; stir gently to combine; sprinkle dates on top.
Close the cover, set on Porridge cycle.
NOTE1: This recipe is designed for a rice cooker with fuzzy logic - use the porridge setting. If you have a regular rice cooker, you will need to watch it to determine when the oatmeal is done, probably 25 to 30 minutes, depending on your cooker.
NOTE2: Steel cut oats vary slightly. With some brands I find I need to reduce the milk to 1 1/2 cup to get the right consistency.
NOTE3: You can substitute vanilla flavored soy milk for the milk plus vanilla extract.

original recipe

Easy Vegetable Coconut Milk Curry

At lunchtime today, I began preparing an old standby, stir fry with tofu, when I thought to myself, hey, why don't you switch it up a bit today, get adventurous, like add chicken broth to the vegetables instead of water? So I did just that. I sauteed my usual onion and celery, then added some carrots, asparagus, red pepper, broccoli and spinach. When all of the pan juices had cooked off, I added 1 1/2 cups of water mixed with a large chicken bouillion cube and let that simmer. Then I added 2 good spoonfuls of minced garlic and about a teaspoon of ginger paste I had sitting in my fridge. I added a few generous shakes of seasoning salt and pepper, and a few dashes of red pepper flakes (for some heat). Then I got the idea to make it into a curry, so I added half a can of coconut milk. Voila! It was really tasty, if I do say so myself, and it actually tasted like something one would find in a Thai restaurant. The nice thing is you can adapt it to whatever vegetables you have on hand, and it makes ordinary vegetables seem exotic and almost sweet. I will definitely be scarfing up the leftovers during tomorrow's lunch.

1 yellow Vidalia onion, chopped

3 stalks celery, chopped

2 tablespoons olive oil

seasoning salt, to taste

pepper, to taste

1 small head broccoli, florets only

1 bunch asparagus, hard ends snapped off

1 cup baby carrots

1 red pepper, diced

2 cups fresh spinach leaves

1 1/2 cups water

1 large chicken bouillion cube, or 1 1/2 cups chicken broth

dash red pepper flakes, or to taste

1/2- 15 ounce can coconut milk

In a large frying pan, heat olive oil over medium heat, then add to that onions and celery. Saute until onions are soft, about 5 minutes. Add a few dashes of seasoning salt and pepper, then add the broccoli, asparagus, carrots and red pepper. Saute until the vegetables soften, about 5 minutes, adding the water and bouillion cube when the vegetables start to brown and the juices have evaporated. When the vegetables are tender, add the spinach and saute. Add the red pepper flakes and coconut milk and simmer for about 5 minutes. Can serve alone or with brown rice.