Mexican Black Bean Salad

I was looking though one of my Southern Living cookbooks for side dishes to serve with dinner and I found this one.  While I was preparing it my husband told me more than once that it smelled great.  The combination of chopped onion and fresh tomatoes was filling the kitchen.  By the time dinner was served, anticipation was high.  Healthy, colorful, aromatic...I decided to give it a try before serving it.  Oh no!  How disappointing!  It was similar to a taco salad that I make, but it totally lacked flavor!  How could something with so many awesome ingredients not taste fantastic?  The dressing completely lacked flavor...I had to make modifications to the recipe since it didn't have quite that wow factor that I was looking for and, the green leaf lettuce couldn't stand up to the weight of the dressing and beans.  By that I mean, once tossed with the dressing, the lettuce didn't have any distinguishable flavor or texture.  I would use a hardier lettuce next time, like iceberg or a romaine/iceberg mix.  I want my lettuce to crunch when I bite into it, not fall flat.  To improve the dressing I added some medium salsa to it.  It saved the salad.  Below is my adapted version.  I would make it again using this version.

Here's the salad when tossed.

Here's the salad when served as a small side salad (not tossed).

Ingredients

• 1 (8-ounce) carton sour cream
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 tbs taco seasoning
• 1/4 cup medium salsa 
• 1 head iceberg lettuce, shredded
• 2 cups (8 ounces) shredded sharp cheddar cheese
• 1/2 cup chopped purple onion
• 2 (15-ounce) cans black beans, rinsed and drained
• 2 large tomatoes, chopped
• corn chips, slightly crushed
• 1 fresh lime, cut into large wedges, optional

Directions

1. Combine first 4 ingredients into a bowl, cover and refrigerate for 1 hour or overnight.
2. In a large bowl combine next 5 ingredients, toss with dressing.
3. Sprinkle with corn chips, serve immediately with a wedge of lime on the side.

Here's the original recipe from my cookbook.

Rustic Potato Pizza

I once saw a photo of potato slices on pizza.  It looked good.  Very, very good.  The other day I was thinking about making a pizza and I recalled the potato pizza.  I researched various recipes and some said to peel then cook the potato, some didn't say to cook it first.  Some recipes called for butter while others called for EVOO.  Some  instructions said to bake for 15 minutes, others said to bake for 35.  Since none of the ingredients nor directions set me on a clear path I decided to create my own.  I'm so happy I did.  It turned out fantastic and it's versatile.  Alter the ingredients (cheese, potatoes, herbs) to suit your preferences or to use up the cheese you've got in the refrigerator.  What is also nice is that you don't have to measure out each ingredient.  If you like more cheese, use it.  If you want less, cut it back.  Just make sure you have the pizza covered so that each bite has some potato.

This pizza is light.  Even though it's got oil, cheese and potatoes, it bodes well for an appetizer for a group of friends to share.  To serve it as an entree, serve it with a salad.  The combination of mozzarella cheese and Gruyere cheese is incredible.  You can use any combination that you like.  I was really in the mood to buy some Gruyere and I thought it would complement the creamy taste of the Yukon potatoes and fresh rosemary.  Gruyere is a harder cheese with a slightly salty yet creamy flavor.

Ingredients

• 1 FRESH homemade or store-bought pizza dough (regular or whole wheat) 
• NOT ready-made like Boboli
• 2 tbs Fresh rosemary, roughly chopped, divided
• you can use dried but it can't match the quality of the fresh stuff
• 1 Yukon (yellow) potato, peeled and sliced about 1/8"
• a potato about the size of your fist
• 6 oz Gruyere cheese, shredded, divided
• 6 oz mozzarella cheese, shredded, divided
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• EVOO 
• S & P

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 450F.
2. Peel and slice potato.  Set in a bowl of salted water and set aside.
3. Spread or roll fresh pizza dough on a greased baking sheet pan.
4. Brush EVOO on dough to cover, sprinkle with garlic and 1 tbs chopped rosemary.
5. Spread 3/4 of the shredded cheeses on the dough.
6. Drain potatoes and pat dry.  Sprinkle both sides with S & P.  Place on pizza.  Do not shingle or layer.
7. Cover the pizza with the remaining cheese and rosemary.
8. Bake for 20 minutes. 

We all really enjoyed this recipe, although my son picked off the rosemary first.  

Black Bean Lasagna

This is one of my all-time favorite homemade meal(s).  I have prepared it many times and have tweaked the recipe a couple of times.  My sister-in-law shared with recipe with me a few years ago.  I believe she found it in Cooking Light magazine or something like that.  It takes a bit of time to prepare, as lasagna does.  I've tried using no-bake lasagna noodles and I'm not a fan.  I'd rather cook my own pasta and just suck up the time and effort it takes to boil the noodles.  This lasagna is flavorful, colorful, almost completely healthy and smells great during preparation and while baking.

You can vary the degree of spiciness by altering the ingredients, but using spicy black beans and a medium salsa makes it perfect!  Would anyone like to come over for dinner and try it?  I mean it.  Open invite!  You might even be offered a glass of wine...

Ingredients

1 cup                chopped onion

1 cup                chopped bell peppers (any color)

2 tsp                 minced garlic

1 cup                chopped tomato

2 each              chopped jalapeno peppers (optional)

2 (15 oz) cans  black beans, drained & rinsed (Whole Food Spicy BB are yummy!)

3 tbs                 fresh chopped cilantro              

8 oz                  low-fat sour cream

1 each              large egg, lightly beaten

1 (16oz) btl      chunky salsa (I use 24oz of Kirkland Organic Medium Chucky Salsa)

Cooking spray

12 each            cooked lasagna noodles

16 oz               shredded Monterey jack cheese (I like to use 8oz monterey jack, 8oz pepper jack)

Directions

1.      Sauté onion, peppers, garlic for 6 minutes over medium heat.

2.      Add tomatoes, cook 3 more minutes.

3.      Add jalapenos & beans, cook 3 more minutes.

4.      Remove from heat, let cool for 10 minutes.

5.      Stir in cilantro, sour cream, & egg.

6.      Spread 13 x 9 pan with cooking spray.

7.      Arrange 4 noodles over salsa & top with 1/2 bean mixture, 1/2 cup cheese & 3 tbs salsa. 

8.      Repeat layers, ending with noodles.

9.      Spread remaining salsa over noodles & sprinkle with 1/2 cup cheese.

10.  Spray foil with non-stick spray, cover and bake at 375 F for 30 minutes.

11.  Uncover and bake for 15 minutes or until cheese melts.

12.  Let stand 5 minutes.

Serves 8.

 

Chocolate Chip Banana Muffins

I'm feeling indecisive today. I prepared these amazing muffins late this morning and I love more than one picture that I took. I've included them all. Please tell me which one you prefer.

I love banana and I love chocolate. A few weeks ago I made some stellar chocolate banana spring rolls. Today I made a recipe I found on AllRecipes.com. After reading through other people's suggestions, I had my game plan. I love that in this day & age you can do more than flip through a cookbook. I always read other people's comments and check out the photos they post so that I can make it as perfect as possible the first time. With this recipe I've adapted the ingredients, as I do with almost all the recipes I find. I cut out the oil and substituted in applesauce and yogurt. I've also combined AP flour with some whole wheat flour. I'm so glad I did because they are fantastic without all of the guilt.

My preschooler was so excited to try one that he actually asked me to take his picture with them. After he tried them he gave them the "thumbs up"!

Ingredients

• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 egg
• 3/4 cup applesauce
• 1/4 cup yogurt (plain, vanilla, or banana)
  
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional)
  
• 3 medium bananas (1/2 thinly sliced for garnish, 3 1/2 mashed)
  
• 3/4 cup mini semisweet chocolate chips

Directions

1. In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In another bowl, combine the egg, applesauce, yogurt and vanilla.

2. Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened. Fold in bananas and chocolate chips.

3. Fill greased or paper-lined muffin cups two-thirds full. Bake at 350 degrees F for 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks.

*This recipe yielded me 17 muffins.

Enjoy!

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/chocolate-chip-banana-muffins-2/detail.aspx

Homemade Mozzarella Sticks

So I feel like I'm on a bit of a roll after recreating that amazing Jalapeno Popper Grilled Cheese and now recreating this tasty appetizer. Neither item is healthy but both are incredibly tasty and super easy to execute.

I found this lovely recipe on Pinterest. I might spend a few hours here and there on the site, but it's quality time! I made this yesterday afternoon and surprised my husband with this treat while he was outside playing with our son. We ended up tailgating in the truck of my SUV in our garage. It was a fun time.

After reading the recipe and combing over other people's reviews I came up with a game plan on how to execute this. I felt pretty confident using these egg roll wrappers after overcoming my fear of frying wonton wrappers a couple of weeks ago.

The outcome was fantastic. I fried them as the recipe called for, but I might try and bake them next time. I hesitate to though because I worry about the texture. Texture is really important for this treat. The flavor is mild so you need the texture to compensate a bit. Serve it with a really good quality marinara sauce. This also helps compliment the mild flavor. I had no issues with the cheese melting out of the egg roll wrapper.

I've adapted the recipe.

Ingredients

• 12 pieces string cheese
• 12 egg roll wrappers
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1-2 cups Italian flavored Panko breadcrumbs
  
• Oil for deep-fat frying
• Marinara or spaghetti sauce

Directions

• Place a piece of string cheese near the bottom corner of one egg roll wrapper. Fold bottom corner over cheese. Roll up halfway; fold sides toward center over cheese. Moisten remaining corner with egg; roll up tightly to seal. Brush egg all over the outside of egg roll wrapper and roll in panko. Press down firmly to make sure panko sticks, as needed. Repeat with remaining wrappers and cheese.
• In an electric skillet, heat 1/2 in. of oil to 375°. I set the dial to 6.
• Fry sticks, a few at a time, for about 1 minute or so on each side or until golden brown. Keep a close eye on them so they don't over cook. Drain on paper towels. Serve with marinara sauce.
  
• Yield: 1 dozen.

http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/Mozzarella-Sticks-2?pmcode=IKLDC05S&_mid=838832&_rid=838832.650200.781355/

Jalapeno Popper Grilled Cheese

I have not been this excited about something I've prepared - ever! This one really knocked my socks off...and my husband's too! I found a photo of a Jalapeno Popper Grilled Cheese sandwich on Pinterest. I followed the "pin" back to a blog called "Becky Bakes" where she made the sandwich created by the blog "Closet Cooking". If you venture to the other blogs you'll see that these people are wonderful photographers. I totally need tips!

Anyways...after reading "Becky Bakes", I decided that the recipe was more involved than I wanted to commit to preparing. Why? Because I really didn't want to spend time broiling my jalapenos and then peeling them. That's just too much work for a sandwich. And Becky also mentioned that she only used one jalapeno but she'd use two next time to punch up the flavor. I had an idea! Why not try pickled jalapenos? No broiling, no peeling, use as much or as little as you like depending on the amount of kick you can handle.

I really never even read the recipe on the other sites. I just got too excited and prepped it the way I wanted to. I bought some sourdough bread, buttered the outside, slathered the insides with cream cheese, tossed a piece of real cheddar cheese on there and placed a single layer of pickled jalapenos on top. I picked out the seeds as you can see on the side on the photo below. I grilled mine on the pre-heated George Foreman grill for just over 4 minutes.
The bread came out crunchy on the outside and the inside literally tasted just like a jalapeno popper - but with bread and no frying. It was so good that I made a second one for lunch! I can't ever imagine making a plain old grilled cheese sandwich again. You've gotta try this!

In fact, I'll make it for you if you'd like! Here's a contest of sorts...If you live in the DC Metro area, leave a comment in the comment section of this blog entry and tell me why you'd like me to make this sandwich for you. If I only get a comment or two, your chances will be great that you'll be a winner! So easy.

Here's another nugget - I've got a Tummy Temptations Facebook page in the works. I don't know what I'm doing and it's sloppy, but I'm sure if you search for it you'll find it. If you are one of the first two "local" people to "Like" it, I'll make you a surprise treat!

Update: 3/26/12.
I made this again today using Mt. Olive brand pickled jalapenos. Not impressed. Definitely use Old El Paso brand. Thicker, spicier slices of jalapeno.

http://www.closetcooking.com/2011/04/jalapeno-popper-grilled-cheese-sandwich.html

http://www.beckybakes.net/2011/04/13/jalapeno-popper-grilled-cheese-sandwich/

Birds' Nests

Who's ready for Spring? The Robins are out in large numbers. The temperature here in the D.C. Metro area is above-average with today's high being around 66 degrees and my flowerbed is in bloom. I think the Groundhog was wrong, which is alright with me. I just wish I could return my son's new snowsuit and gloves. They'll be too small for him to use next year.

So in honor of Spring I decided to try and make a treat that I made a long time ago intermediate school home ec class. No cooking/baking makes this super easy. Use pastel M&Ms or for a fancier, more accurate looking nest use Cadbury mini eggs as your bird eggs.

Ingredients

pan spray or unsalted butter, for greasing the muffin pan

4 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips

4 oz butterscotch chips

3/4 cup creamy peanut butter

5 oz chow mein noodles

36 pastel M&Ms or mini Cadbury eggs

Instructions

1. Grease the wells of a muffin pan with pan spray or butter.

2. In a large microwave-proof bowl, heat the chocolate and butterscotch chips in 30 second intervals until thoroughly melted, stirring after each increment. (It only took me three 30-second intervals).

3. Once melted, add the peanut butter to the chocolate/butterscotch mixture, mixing well until smooth and completely mixed.

4. Add the chow mein noodles, stirring gently with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula, until completely coated.

5. Using a large spoon, mold the mixture into the wells of your muffin tin.

6. Chill the nests until hardened, for at least 1 hour.

7. Once chilled, gently remove the nests from the muffin tin.

8. Place three eggs on the tops of each nest.

Homemade Shells and Cheese

Who doesn't like mac and cheese? Come on...you know you're the 99%! Who likes it made with processed cheese vs. real cheese? The processed stuff tastes great, but it's not so great for you. Here's my attempt at homemade shells and cheese made with a blend of real cheese. I used a blend of regular shredded hormone-free cheddar and smoked mozzarella. It’s pretty easy to make since you make it on the stove top and there is no baking.

It turned out great! Very creamy and very smokey. My 4 1/2 year old son had never tried mac and cheese until tonight...and he ate it! He didn't inhale it like I did, but then again he's not really a pasta lover.

Because this side dish is so creamy and delicious, it really needs something to enhance the flavor and texture so thinly sliced green onions made the perfect topping. Breadcrumbs would work but I find them to often times be too heavy.

Enjoy!

Ingredients

8 ounces medium whole wheat shells
¼ cup butter
¼ cup flour
½ teaspoon salt
1 dash black pepper
2 cups organic milk
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup smoked mozzarella
sliced green onions

Directions

1 - Cook shells according to package directions.
2 - Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Stir in flour, salt and pepper. Slowly add the milk and cook while whisking out any lumps and stirring until the mixture becomes somewhat thick. Stir in the cheese until melted. Remove from heat.
3 - Drain shells and toss them to the cheese sauce. Stir to coat. Top with green onions for serving if desired.

(Makes 4 Servings)

Tortilla & Black Bean Pie

Something is wrong with me. While I was vacationing in Sandbridge, VA a few years ago I spent some time writing down some recipes. Who in the world spends their time at the beach writing down recipes? I'm not normal. I guess I can cut myself a little slack because we went after peak season and the temperature was a bit cooler and it was really windy, so I stayed inside one afternoon. I would now consider it crazy to write down a recipe. I've had a smart phone for about a year now and when I see a recipe I like, I take a photo of it.

This vegetarian recipe was found inside a Martha Stewart cookbook, or maybe it was a magazine...it's been a few years since I found it. This recipe is versatile. In fact, I would highly recommend doctoring it up to suit your taste. I prepared the recipe as written (substituting spicy black beans for regular) and my husband and I were pretty impressed with the presentation, but pretty disappointed with the overall lack of flavor. It has jalapenos and onions and cumin. How could it lack flavor?I loved seeing the layers; They turned out really well. I think the meal itself needed less corn, more cheese and more of a kick - like adding salsa and tomatoes inside. I topped mine with sour cream. I will make this again but with the suggestions I just made and if you're a meat-eater I'd recommend adding some marinated shredded pork tenderloin. I did not adapt the recipe.

Ingredients

4 flour tortillas (10 inch)
1 tbs canola oil
1 large onion, diced
1 jalapeno, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp ground cumin
S & P
2 cans (15oz) black beans, drained and rinsed
12 oz beer or 1 1/2 cups water
1 package (10oz) frozen corn
4 scallions, thinly sliced + more for garnish
2 1/2 cups shredded cheddar

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400F. Trim tortillas to fit 9" spring form pan.
2. Heat oil in skillet over medium heat. Add onion, jalapeno, garlic and cumin. Season with
S & P. Cook stirring occasionally - 5-7 minutes.
3. Add beans and beer to skillet and boil. Reduce heat to medium. Simmer until liquid has almost evaporated - 8-10 minutes. Stir in corn and scallions and remove from heat. Season with S & P.
4. Tortilla on the bottom of the pan. Layer with 1/4 of beans and 1/2 cup of cheese. Repeat 3 times.
5. Use 1 cup cheese on top layer.
6. Bake until hot and cheese is melted. 20-25 minutes.
7. Unmold; sprinkle with scallions.
8. Slice into wedges and serve immediately.

Pasta-Stuffed Bell Peppers

We've all had stuffed peppers before. For my wedding the vegetarian entree choice was stuffed green peppers. This is a different version and it is so good! Tonight I prepared a meal that I've made once before. I found this recipe while flipping through one of my Mother-in-Law's cookbooks while I was sick in bed one day. This is a vegetarian meal that the whole family can eat. I've adapted this recipe since the original version calls for bacon and olives - two unnecessary ingredients. I'll include them as an option and you can decide to use them or not. It also calls for mozzarella. I used regular mozzarella the first time I made this, but this time I decided to kick it up a notch and substitute smoked mozzarella. It was a great call; Just the boost it needed. The recipe serves 4, but here's my recommendation...one stuffed pepper per person if serving with a salad or other side, one and a half to two per person if you aren't serving a side dish. Use any color pepper you want. They all taste great. If you have larger peppers, use a little extra macaroni and/or mozzarella when preparing the ingredients. If you have a little extra of the mixture left over, just stuff a bit more into the peppers.

My husband and I gave this recipe a big thumbs up! Tasty, flavorful, colorful, filling. It doesn't get any better. This would be a great way to use fresh, local produce and easy enough to feed a crowd. I served mine standing up as shown in the photo, but you could cut the peppers in half length-wide and stuff them for a different appearance and to make them easier to serve a larger crowd. My preschooler thought it was edible if eaten with a blueberry for each bite. Eh, whatever it takes, right?

Ingredients

6 slices of bacon, chopped (optional)
1 small onion, chopped
1 1/2 cups organic crushed canned tomatoes
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 cup uncooked macaroni noodles
1 cup smoked mozzarella, small diced
12 olives, pitted & thinly sliced (optional)
salt & pepper to taste
2 red peppers
2 yellow peppers
EVOO

Directions

1. Heat oven to 350F. Lightly spray an 8" oval or square baking dish.
2. Cook bacon and drain, keeping bacon fat. Add onions to the bacon fat and saute for 5 minutes. Pour off any excess fat.
-If making the vegetarian version, just saute onions in EVOO for 5 minutes.
3. Stir in tomatoes and pepper flakes. Cook over medium-high to high heat until thickened, about 10 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, cook pasta. Put pasta in mixing bowl, (add bacon), tomato sauce, mozzarella (and olives). Toss to mix. Season with S&P to taste.
5. Cut stem off each pepper and reserve "lids". Remove seeds and ribs.
6. Divide pasta mix evenly among peppers. Put "lids" on. Brush peppers all over with EVOO and set in baking dish.
7. Cover with foil. Bake for 30 minutes. Remove foil and bake until peppers are tender, 25-35 minutes longer.

Pumpkin Stuffed Shells with Hazelnut Cream Sauce

Oh how I love pumpkin. And cream. And pasta.

I get daily emails from allrecipes.com and about once a week a recipe catches my eye. This recipe had many ingredients that I enjoy. I had this recipe on my dinner calendar last month but I pushed it to this month, thinking it might be more involved than I had the energy for, especially after caring for my infant all day.

I decided to start early on dinner preparations in case something "baby related" interrupted me. I toasted the hazelnuts and boiled the pasta shells in the morning. I sauteed the ingredients in the afternoon. By evening, after my husband was off of work, I had time to stuff the shells while I had my husband stirred the sauce with my preschooler while the baby napped. This meal definitely took more coordination on my part than usual.

The results were outstanding. Let me be clearer. The results were OUTSTANDING! If someone had served me this in a restaurant, I'd go back immediately for more. The filling was savory and sweet, but not too sweet. The hazelnut cream sauce did not overpower the pumpkin filling, but rather complimented it. The nuts softened in the sauce but provided a nice texture to the meal. When I read reviews for the recipe, which is supposed to be made with pasta sheets and made into ravioli instead of shells, many people thought the hazelnuts were a waste of money and time (since they need to be toasted and rubbed). I disagree. They made the dish that much better.

I adapted the recipe based on online comments and what spices I already had on-hand.

Enjoy!

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups pumpkin puree
• 1 large carrots, cooked and pureed
• 2 onions, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced (for inside of filling)
  
• 2 teaspoons ground coriander seed
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon ground pumpkin pie spice
  
• 1 pinch ground cardamom
• 3 tbs unsalted butter
• 5 ounces grated Parmesan cheese
• 2 tablespoons real maple syrup
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1 box pasta shells
• salt to taste
• ground black pepper to taste
• 1 cup chopped hazelnuts
• 3 cups heavy whipping cream
• 1 cloves garlic, minced (for sauce)
  
• 1 pinch cayenne pepper
• 1 pinch white pepper
• salt to taste

Directions

1. Cook pasta shells according to instructions.
2. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (205 degrees C). Toast the hazelnuts in a shallow pan on the middle rack for 10 to 12 minutes, or until brown and fragrant. When they are cool enough to handle, wrap the nuts tightly in a lint-free towel, and vigorously rub nuts against the towel. Continue rubbing until the nuts are almost blond.
3. Saute the onions, garlic, and spices in butter or margarine until the onions are soft. Stir together with the pureed vegetables. Add cheese, maple syrup, egg, salt, and black pepper. Adjust seasoning. Set the filling aside.
4. Cook the cream, garlic, cayenne, and white pepper over high heat; stir often, and adjust heat to keep the cream from boiling over. When the cream is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, add a pinch salt. Adjust seasoning. Remove sauce from heat until you're ready to use it.
5. Stuff the shells with the filling. Cover with sauce and sprinkle the top with half of the hazelnuts. Use all of the hazelnuts if you prefer them softer. I recommend doing this.
   
6. Bake at 350F for 30 minutes. Sprinkle with remaining toasted hazelnuts, if you didn't use them all already. Serve with a nice salad and garlic bread.

Vegetarian Curry Crock Pot

Two of my favorite things in life are massages (which I don't get often enough) and Indian food. I go out for dinner to the Indian restaurant for my birthday literally every year. I love it but yet I'm not adventurous enough to actually cook it. I have friends who have made paneer from scratch. I've watched how easy it is to make naan via the Food Network and Youtube. But I hadn't dared to actually prepare a meal...until I found this crock pot recipe. I love my crock pot and I'm always looking for new recipes to try. This one looked easy enough. I found it on a website where a lady made a different crock pot meal every day for a year. Sounds crazy to me!

I served this vegetarian curry first to my husband while we ate in shifts, which parents with babies know needs to be done on occasion. He was disappointed. It looked beautiful. It was healthy. It called for lots of curry seasoning. It made the house smell great. But, the flavor was lacking. Taking his comments, I tweaked it a bit before I ate it and his second opinion while eating left-overs was much more favorable. I've adapted the recipe to suit our taste.

Served over basmati rice with a side of garlic naan and a dollop of plain yogurt, I was able to tweak it from something disappointing to something rather tasty.


Ingredients

2 cans drained and rinsed garbanzo beans (chick peas)

1 diced red pepper

4 tiny potatoes, or 1 regular-sized

1/2 cup diced carrots

1/2 cup diced celery

3 cloves smashed and chopped garlic

3 tbsp (yes, tablespoons!) curry

1 tsp ground coriander

1/4 tsp red (cayenne) pepper

1 lg can tomatoes (and juice)

2 cups vegetable broth

3/4 cup plain yogurt

1 cup frozen peas (to add later - optional)

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

Directions

1. add drain and rinsed garbanzo beans to your crockpot

2. cover with diced vegetables and add spices

3. toss in tomatoes, yogurt and broth

4. stir to mix flavors

5. cook on low for 8-10 hours, or longer. Sneak a taste and season with more salt & pepper as desired.

6. 20 minutes before serving, stir in the frozen peas. Turn to high.

Coming soon....

Mini-Taco Salad Appetizer

Every Friday night is "Taco Friday" here at my house. A friend of mine has "Taco Tuesday" at her house and I thought the idea was so good that I decided to steal it for my family. Knowing what your family is going to eat one night out of every week means I only have to attempt to be creative six other nights of the week. And, who wouldn't want to eat their favorite meal once a week? It's one of my favorites, and since I cook 99% of the meals, the husband and son must eat it every week too. (Well, realistically, my son doesn't eat it. But maybe that will change one day).

We're not a very exciting family so the chances of us heading out on a Friday night are slim to none and tacos are a super fast dinner. We always have shredded cheddar on hand. I manage a restaurant for the closing shift on Wed. and Thurs. and our diced tomatoes are only supposed to be used for that day's business. So...if I remember, I snag a soup cup full of diced tomatoes to use for Friday dinner. Seems like a waste to toss them and using them the next day to make a $7+ salad doesn't seem fair to the customer - so they are mine! Wa-ha-ha!

So last Friday night I was preparing vegetarian tacos for dinner. If I've got organic ground beef on hand I'll make it for my meat-eater husband. Last Friday he was out of luck. So as I was preparing the meal (which I can do in as little as 12 minutes), I pulled chips out of the pantry. I love tacos, my husband prefers taco salad. So anyways...I was pulling chips out of the pantry and found I had two open bags. Mission rounds are my favorite. We also had those kind that look like little chip cups. Light bulb moment...and there we have it. The creation of the mini-taco salad appetizer. I secretly made three and presented it to my husband. He looked so excited as I place the plate in front of him. Honestly, I know the presentation is wasted on him and I know he was hungry, hence the excitement of seeing food placed before him. But...after hearing how good they were, even though they were vegetarian, I decided to delay dinner while I made myself a couple. OMG! So good. A little bit of this and a little bit of that sitting on a tortilla chip was the perfect amount of every ingredient.

After preparing a few more to photograph, we finally had dinner. And, we both went back for seconds. Yum. Every "Taco Friday" is going to begin with Mini-Taco Salad Apps from now on!

Oh, and as a side note, I'm getting a new camera in February! I am so excited that I've been literally dreaming about it. Hopefully my photographs will look more appealing after I learn how to use the camera, since it'll be sooooo much better than the one I currently use.

Chili Cook-Off: Meat vs. Vegetarian

The weather forecast is calling for snow tomorrow. It's been cool and windy a lot lately and it seems like the right time to make chili. Being a vegetarian married to a meat-eater can be exhausting in the kitchen, but today I was feeling energetic (probably because I remembered to take my vitamins).

I often use Kraft's A-1 Chili recipe but today I decided to wing it. Sauteed onions, green chiles, diced tomatoes, ground beef, kidney beans, chili seasoning and a dash of A-1. After browning the meat, I tossed everything into the crock pot. Dinner done...done for tomorrow night's dinner too!

I didn't feel like making two dinners, but even though I planned on serving chili to the whole family, making a vegetarian chili was a necessity. But chili is so easy to make and using Morningstar Crumbles is even easier than browning meat. The veggie chili is the same as the other one, just substituted the Crumbles.


I don't have two crock pots so I let my veggie chili simmer on the stove on low. I got distracted the didn't stir it for a while and some kidney beans burnt a bit. Oh well. Now I know what to ask for next Christmas!

Because the meaty chili looked and smelled better, I give it first place in the chili cook-off. I don't even have to taste it to know it's better. Maura, Brooke, Mary - you missed out on some yummy chili!

Black Bean Chimichanga

While flipping those a Southern Living magazine a while ago...almost 3 years ago...I stumbled upon a recipe for Black Bean Chimichangas. Being a vegetarian and a fan of black beans and Mexican fare, I decided to give it a try. It looked easy enough and versatile.

I love this recipe. I've made this dish about half a dozen times and it has never disappointed. It's very simple to make if you use a can of black beans (I like Whole Foods Spicy Organic BB). I use large whole wheat burrito shells and can make about 5 chimichangas per batch. The variation of ingredients you can use is limitless. I've made them vegetarian, with shredded pork left-overs, ground beef and chicken. You can add what ever fresh ingredients you like to change the flavor profile.

http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=10000001806859

This photo was taken in February 2011. Instead of using burrito shells, I used smaller tortilla shells and wrapped them like enchiladas. So versatile.