Avocado and Black Bean Enchiladas

When it comes to enchiladas, nine times out of ten I will order Queso Enchiladas, beef enchiladas topped with chili con queso.  Be still my heart.  Sadly, now that we're a (mostly) dairy free household, I can no longer indulge in such delicacies.  So in order to feed my enchilada craving, I came up with these delicious, and much healthier, Avocado and Black Bean Enchiladas.  Serve a plate of these with a green salad or Spanish rice and you've got a fantastic Mexican meal that you don't have to feel guilty about!

In order to save time, I used canned enchilada sauce, but these would be even better with a homemade sauce.  If we could eat dairy, then I think this Poblano Cream Sauce would pair beautifully with these yummy enchiladas.  Also, I like my enchiladas on the drier side, so I only used one can of enchilada sauce, but if you like them wetter, use two cans.

Avocado and Black Bean Enchiladas

1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 white onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 15-oz can black beans, rinsed and drained
1/3 cup water or broth
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon Mexican oregano
1/2 teaspoon cumin
2 large ripe avocados, peeled, seeded and sliced
1 lime, juiced
salt and pepper, to taste
12 corn tortillas
vegetable oil
1 cup shredded cheddar, pepper jack cheese, or Daiya cheddar cheese substitute
1 10-oz can red enchilada sauce
optional garnishes: sour cream, extra cheese, chopped tomatoes, fresh cilantro, and/or black olives

In a small saucepan over medium heat, saute onions, bell pepper and garlic in olive oil until onion is translucent.  Stir in beans, water, chili powder, oregano and cumin.  Let beans mixture simmer, stirring often, until the liquid is almost all gone, about 10-15 minutes.  Set aside and let cool.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Spray a casserole pan with nonstick spray.  Spread a little enchilada sauce on the bottom of the pan.

In a small bowl, toss avocado slices with lime juice.  Season to taste with salt and a little pepper.  Set aside.

In a saute pan, add 1/2-inch depth of vegetable oil and heat it on medium.  Test the oil by dropping a few water droplets into the oil.  If they sizzle and bubble, the oil is ready.  If they don't, then let the oil continue heating and test again.  Using tongs, carefully drop one tortilla into the hot oil for 5-10 seconds. Remove to your work surface.  Spoon about 1/4 cup of bean mixture down the center of the tortilla and top with 1-2 slices of avocado.  Roll up enchilada and place seam side down in baking dish.  Repeat with remaining ingredients.

Sprinkle cheese over enchiladas.  Pour enchilada sauce over the cheese.  Bake 25-30 minutes in preheated oven.  Let cool 5 minutes before serving.  Garnish with sour cream, more cheese, chopped tomatoes, fresh cilantro and/or sliced black olives.

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Cowboy Quesdillas

These quesadillas are a refreshing change of pace from the traditional quesadillas.  I love the addition of BBQ sauce to kick up the flavor a notch and they are a perfect dinner when you're running short on time or you need to feed a crowd.  To simplify things, I baked my quesadillas in the oven because I've learned from past experience that it's really not enjoyable to stand over a stove for 15-20 minutes flipping one quesadilla after another.  While the tortillas don't get as browned in the oven as they do on the stove, they do get just as crunchy - and that's the important thing!  The filling for these is very hearty, so you really don't need to add the chicken (unless you have a carnivore in the family that must be fed).

You'll notice that this recipe makes 10 quesadillas, so unless you want to feed a lot, you'll probably want to half the recipe.  But the quesadillas do reheat well in the toaster or oven, so I've been serving them for lunch for the past few days.

Cowboy Quesadillas
recipe adapted from Our Best Bites

for the quesadillas:
1 15-oz can black beans, drained and rinsed well
1 15-oz can pinto beans, drained and rinsed well
1 cup frozen corn, defrosted
2 roma tomatoes, seeded and chopped
4 green onions, sliced
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
1 large or 2 small chicken breasts, cooked and chopped
1/4 cup BBQ sauce
4 cups Mexican shredded cheese blend
20 tortillas

for the sauce:
2/3 cup fat free ranch dressing
1/3 cup BBQ sauce

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Put foil or parchment paper on two large cookie/baking sheets.  Arrange 10 tortillas on the two baking sheets, trying to overlap the tortillas as little as possible.  Set aside.

In a large bowl, combine black beans, pinto beans, corn, tomatoes, green onions, cilantro, chicken and BBQ sauce.  Mix well.

Sprinkle a little cheese on the top of each of the tortillas on the baking sheets.  Evenly divide the filling between the 10 tortillas and top each with more cheese.  Cover them with the remaining 10 tortillas.  Bake quesadillas for about 15-20 minutes, or until the tortillas are toasty and the filling is hot throughout.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, stir together the ranch dressing and BBQ sauce.

Cut tortillas in half or quarters.  Serve hot with the BBQ-ranch sauce.

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Spicy Bean Burritos

This is one of those great meals that you can keep on hand for nights when you don't feel like cooking but you don't want to go out either. I already had most everything stocked in my kitchen and it used up some random odds and ends that were hanging out in my vegetable bin. And it's quick and easy to prepare. I was pleasantly surprised at how those few ingredients combined to make some super tasty refried beans! They had a fantastic, slow cooked homemade flavor without very much time or effort. While they were great wrapped in the burritos, I think they'd be great all on their own too.

Feel free to stuff your burrito with whatever ingredients you enjoy. I used green onions, cilantro, chopped tomatoes, avocado slices, shredded cheese, lettuce and sour cream. I placed the assorted toppings on the table and let everyone wrap up their own burritos. It was fun to do it that way and it was less time-consuming for me. Win, win! For Finley, I reserved some of the bean mixture before adding the salsa so the beans wouldn't too spicy for her.

Spicy Bean Burritos

adapted from Annie's Eats

For the beans:

2 teaspoons canola or vegetable oil

2-3 cloves minced garlic

1 teaspoon chili powder

1 teaspoon ancho chili powder

1 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon Mexican oregano

kosher salt, to taste

Dash of cayenne pepper

1/3 cup chicken broth

1 15-oz can black beans, drained and rinsed

1 15-oz can pinto beans, drained and rinsed

4-6 tablespoons fresh salsa

For serving:

6 (9 or 10-inch) flour tortillas, warmed

Shredded chipotle cheddar cheese

Chopped tomatoes

Shredded lettuce

Sliced avocado

Chopped green onions

Minced Cilantro

Low-fat sour cream

In a saucepan over medium heat, add oil, garlic, chili powders, cumin, oregano, salt and cayenne pepper. Cook, stirring often, until spice mixture becomes fragrant, about 30-60 seconds. Add beans and chicken broth. Stir and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 10-15 minutes. Remove from heat and mash beans to desired consistency.

Spread a large dollop of beans on each tortilla and top with shredded cheese, tomatoes, lettuce, avocado, green onions, cilantro and sour cream.

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Chicken Tostados

The name of this recipe is simply Chicken Tostado, but they are so much more than your ordinary, run of the mill chicken tostado. Maybe a better name would have been Super Awesome, Totally Tubular Chicken Tostados or Chicken, Black Bean and Guacamole Tostados with a Sour Cream-Lime-Cilantro Sauce, but those were both a little too long for me.

Anyway, this was a fun, casual dinner that was still delicious. And everyone really liked it, including Finley, which is always a good thing. Because I used a rotisserie chicken and a good quality store bought guacamole, the dinner came together quickly too.

Chicken Tostados

a Baking and Eggs original

8 tostado shells

1 (14.5-oz) can of black beans, drained and rinsed

1 1/2 - 2 cups Mexican blend shredded cheese

2 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded

1/2 cup regular or chipotle salsa

1 (7-oz) package prepared guacamole (or make your own)

4 oz sour cream

1/2 lime, zest and juice

1/3 cup cilantro

salt and pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. On a large (or two smaller ones) baking sheet, spread out tostado shells in a single layer. Divide black beans evenly between the shells. Top beans with cheese. Bake for 10 minutes, or until cheese is melted and shells are crisp.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine shredded chicken and salsa. Set aside.

In another bowl, stir to combine sour cream, lime zest, lime juice, cilantro, salt and pepper. Spoon sour cream mixture into a ziplock bag. Set aside.

Remove tostados from oven. Top them with even amounts of guacamole. Mound chicken on top of guacamole. Snip one corner of the ziplock bag and drizzle sour cream mixture over chicken and serve.

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Taco Pasta

Even though the Taco Lettuce Wraps were fantastic, we still had lots of leftovers that I wanted to use up. Knowing Andrew and I aren't fans of leftovers, I decided to re-use the ingredients in a pasta dish to make them seem less like leftovers. While this recipe isn't going to win any gourmet recipe contests, we really liked it and it was a quick meal to put together because there wasn't any prep work. Two meals for the effort of one - we all need at least a couple of these kinds of dishes in our recipe arsenals!

Taco Pasta

adapted from Annie's Eats

8 oz macaroni pasta (or other short pasta)

4 oz cream cheese

6 oz sour cream

1 c shredded sharp cheddar cheese (plus more for garnish)

1/2 lb seasoned taco meat (leftover from yesterday's Taco Lettuce Wraps)

2 c leftover Black Bean & Corn Salad

In a large pot, cook pasta according to manufacturer's directions. Drain and return pasta to hot pot. Reduce heat to low and add cream cheese. Stir until cream cheese has melted. Add sour cream, cheddar cheese, taco meat and salad. Stir well to combine. Garnish with extra cheese.

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Chicken Tostadas

I found this recipe on another food blog I like to look at and I loved that its a no-cook dish. We all need a few of those in our repertoires! My husband and I started a small business (I linked our website so you can check it out!) this fall and it really took off in January so these easy recipes are quickly becoming a staple in our household. Between raising a young daughter, keeping house and working on the business, there hasn't been a whole lot of time for cooking.

Anywhoo, this recipe was great and the sauce really makes the dish seem much more gourmet than it really is. I altered the toppings a bit and ended up popping them in the oven (thus ruining the whole no-cook aspect of the dish!) but I wanted my cheese melted. I used chicken meat from a store-bought rotisserie chicken, refried black beans, a mix of shredded sharp cheddar and Monterrey jack cheeses, diced tomatoes and shredded lettuce. I followed the recipe for the sauce though and I thought it was wonderful! I had intended to make a Mexican chopped salad to accompany the tostadas but time got away from me. I'm glad I didn't bother with the salad though because the tostadas were very filling on their own.

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Pantry Chili

My regular chili recipe has about a gazillion ingredients. Don't get me wrong, it's delicious and worth the time and expense to make...BUT this Pantry Chili recipe is wonderful to make when you need something hearty, quick to prepare and with few ingredients. We've all had one of those days when you look at the clock, realize it's 5:30 and you have no idea what you're going to make for dinner. This recipe can come to your rescue!

Pantry Chili

1 lb ground turkey or beef

2 T chili powder

1 can corn, drained

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed

1 can white beans, drained and rinsed

2 cans Ro-Tel or diced tomatoes (do NOT drain these)

2-3 T tomato paste

Shredded cheddar cheese, for serving

In a pot over medium heat, add ground meat and cook until browned. Drain fat. Sprinkle chili powder over meat and stir. Add all the canned veggies and stir well. Lower heat to medium-low and let simmer for about 30 minutes. A few minutes before you want to eat, stir in the tomato paste to thicken the broth. Sprinkle with cheddar cheese and serve!

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White Christmas Chili

I decided to make this chili in honor of the snow we had in Central Texas last weekend. My friend Lora made it for a potluck party we had over a year ago and I just stumbled onto the recipe last week - perfect timing for the snow day!

This white chili is a nice switch from the traditional red beef chili. It's really more of a chicken and white soup since it didn't seem as thick and hearty as chili normally is. Regardless of its classification, it was an outstanding soup! So flavorful with just a bit of heat from the chilis and cayenne pepper. Andrew and I both ate two bowls of it last night!

White Christmas Chili

1 1/4 lb chicken tenders or breasts

1 large onion, chopped and divided

2 T butter

3 celery ribs, diced

3 (16 oz) cans white beans (I used navy beans), drained, rinsed and divided

1 (10.5 oz) can cream of chicken soup

2 (4 oz) cans chopped green chilies

6 c chicken broth (I used low sodium)

1 t cumin

3/4 t garlic powder

1 bay leaf

3/4 t salt

1/8 t cayenne pepper

To serve: cilantro, shredded cheese (I used extra sharp cheddar and monterey pepper jack)

Fill a large pot half full of water and place over medium-high heat. Place chicken and half of the chopped onion in the water. Season with some salt and pepper. Cook 15 to 18 minutes or until chicken is cooked through. Remove chicken, cut into bite-size pieces and set aside. Discard water. (You can use it in place of the chicken broth but I don't like the fatty bits that float in it so I always trash it in favor of boxed chicken broth. I know, I know, I'm stupid to get rid of homemade chicken stock but we all have our flaws.)

Melt butter in the bottom of the pot. Add celery and remaining onion and saute until tender. Stir in chicken, 2 cans of white beans, cream of chicken soup, green chilies, chicken broth, cumin, garlic powder, bay leaf, salt and cayenne pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low and cook 1 hour, stirring occasionally. Process remaining can of beans in a blender until smooth, stopping to scrape down sides. (I added a couple of spoonfuls of chicken broth to the beans so that they processed more easily.) Stir bean puree into chili.

Remove and discard bay leaf. Top with chopped fresh cilantro and shredded cheeses. Serve with cornbread muffins and enjoy!

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Tuscan White Bean Soup

Tuscan White Bean Soup

2 T olive oil

1/2 large white onion, chopped

2 carrots, peeled and chopped

2 celery ribs, chopped

1/2 t dried basil

1/2 t dried sage

1/2 t dried thyme

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 c white wine

1 bay leaf

3 c chicken broth

2 15-oz cans white beans, drained

4 slices pancetta, fried and crumbled (you can substitute bacon if needed)

1/4 c fontina cheese, shredded (you can substitute with just about any white Italian cheese)

4-6 fresh basil leaves, julienned

Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add onion, carrots and celery and saute about 8-10 minutes, or until onions are translucent and vegetables are softened. Add dried basil, sage, thyme, garlic and white wine. Cook until the wine is reduced by half, about 3-5 minutes. Add bay leaf, chicken broth and white beans. Lower the heat to medium-low and simmer covered for 2-4 hours. (Really you can simmer it for as little as 30 minutes, but the flavors are more enhanced the longer it simmers.) About 15 minutes before serving, use an immersion blender to puree the soup(or puree in batches in a blender - but be careful not to burn yourself).

Garnish with crumbled pancetta, fontina and basil leaves.

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Sun-Dried Tomato and White Bean Dip

About a year ago, one of my friends had a birthday party that was catered and there was this addictive white bean dip and I've been wanting to recreate it ever since. I saw this healthy recipe on the Food Newtork website and I knew it would be similar. The only addition I made was about half of a jar of sun-dried tomatoes because I thought their sweetness would contrast nicely with the creamy white beans. (And because I needed to use them up before they expired.) Anyhoo, I took this dip to a Christmas party and it went over nicely - several people asked me for the recipe. It's one I'll definitely make again!

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/white-bean-dip-with-pita-chips-recipe/index.html

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Braised Lamb Shanks with White Beans

I found this recipe on my Epicurious iPhone app, which is where I've been finding loads of recipes lately - love it! Anyhoo, I've been wanting to make lamb shanks at home for years after having them in several restaurants, and I finally got around to doing it tonight. It was so delicious! The prep work is a little time-consuming because of all the chopping but it isn't difficult to do. The end result had the lamb literally falling off the bone tender - no knife was needed! And the white beans side dish were very flavorful and the perfect compliment to the lamb shanks. As I'm typing this post, my mouth is starting to water - I can't wait to eat the leftovers for lunch tomorrow. http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Braised-Lamb-Shanks-with-White-Beans-11831

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Rosemary Citrus Lamb Stew

This is one of my mom's recipes and I'm not sure where she found it. She fixed it for us last year and I haven't stopped thinking about it since! Now that the weather's gotten chillier, it seemed like the perfect time for a hearty stew. Additionally, since it has to slowly cook for several hours, I was able to get it together during Grandma's afternoon visit with Finley.

It turned out just as good as I remembered! It was fairly easy to prepare and delicious. Since the meat gets more tender the longer it cooks, I'm sure this would work well in a crockpot too. The recipe says to cook it 2 1/2 hours but I think I cooked mine closer to 5 hours and the meat was falling apart it was so tender. Can't wait to have the left-overs tomorrow for lunch!


Rosemary Citrus Lamb Stew

1/4 c olive oil
3 lbs lamb stew meat
1 t kosher salt
1/2 t cracked black pepper
1 onion, diced
2 carrots, peeled and sliced
6 cloves garlic, chopped
1 c beef croth
1 c red wine
4 sprigs rosemary
1 bay leaf
2 oranges, zested and juiced
1 can canellini beans, drained and rinsed
salt and pepper to taste

In a large dutch oven, heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Add lamb and season with salt and pepper on all sides. Brown on all sides, stirring as needed for 10 - 12 minutes. Add onions and carrots and cook for 4 more minutes. Add garlic and continue to stir for 30 more seconds. Add wine, broth, rosemary, bay leaf, orange zest and orange juice. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to simmer and cover.

Cook for 2 1/2 hours until meat is fork tender and beginning to pull apart. Remove bay leaf. Add beans and cook for an additional 10 minutes. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper if needed.

*** I served it over jasmine rice.

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Chili

Cold and wet weather means it is chili time! So tonight Andrew and I whipped up a batch of chili to compliment this dreary weather. I have a chili recipe that I have used for a couple of years now and we really like it. I like to serve it with biscuits, fritos or cornbread and I like to top my chili with green onions, sour cream and shredded cheddar cheese. Here's my recipe - it looks like a ton of ingredients but many of them are common spices and seasonings that you probably have in your pantry already:

Chili

1 lb ground beef or bison

4 slices peppered bacon

2 tablespoons olive oil (or leftover bacon grease)

1 small white onion, chopped

1 green bell pepper, chopped

2 ribs celery, chopped

1 (14 oz) can of beef broth

1 can kidney beans, drained

1 can chili beans

1 (14 oz) can diced tomatoes, drained

1 bottle beer of your choice

3 tablespoons chili powder

2 teaspoons garlic, minced

2 teaspoons worcestershire sauce

2 teaspoons oregano, dried

1/2 teaspoon Tabasco

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon basil, dried

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1/2 teaspoon paprika

1/2 teaspoon sugar

1/4 teaspoon cayene

1 (6 oz) can tomato paste

In a saute pan, cook ground beef (or venison) until browned. Drain and set aside. In the same pan, cook bacon until crispy and fat is rendered. Drain bacon on paper towels. Crumble bacon when cool enough to handle and set aside with the beef.

In a large pot over medium heat, add olive oil and saute onion, bell pepper and celery until onion turns translucent. Add the beef, bacon and remaining ingredients, except for the tomato paste, and simmer for at least an hour and up to four hours. Stir in the tomato paste and stir to incorporate it fully. Continue simmering for an additional 30 minutes.

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Nachos

The nachos before I covered all the good stuff with cheese.

Not gourmet, certainly not elegant, but so yummy! And easy! These days easy is of the utmost important since I don't always have a lot of time in the kitchen. For these nachos I laid out tortilla chips on a baking pan and layered them with taco meat, black beans, avocado chunks, tomatoes, green onions and shredded cheddar cheese. Threw them in a 325 degree oven for 9-10 minutes and put them on the table. I served them with a sour cream-salsa dip that I made by combining equal parts sour cream and salsa (go figure!).

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