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Cowboy Caviar

Written on February 10, 2014 by Wannabe Chef in Miscellaneous

My favorite recipes all have two things in common: They’re easy and they’re delicious. This one’s both.

This dip’s about as easy as it comes. There’s no cooking or processing. Just mix all the ingredients and voila! (Or whatever the Mexican equivalent of voila is.)

Make sure to soak the onions before adding them to the dip. Soaking them takes away the sharp bite that raw onions have so they don’t overpower the rest of the ingredients. You can add some diced avocado in as well for an added touch.

Cowboy Caviar

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 0 minutes

Ingredients(Serves about 6 people):

1/2 large red or white onion
1 cup black beans
1/2 cup salsa
3/4 cup corn kernels
1 cup shredded Mexican cheese blend
1/2 teaspoon salt

Method:

Dice the onion with a sharp knife.
Soak the diced onion in cold water for 5 minutes to remove the raw onion bite.
While the onion’s soaking, mix the rest of the ingredients together in a large bowl.
Strain the water from the onion and add it to the mixture.
Mix well. Serve at room temperature.

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Healthy Black Bean Quesadilla

Written on October 24, 2013 by Wannabe Chef in Breakfast, Entree

The saddest thing about moving to a new city besides leaving behind friends and family is always leaving behind good restaurants. There are always a few dished you just can’t find anywhere else and you don’t know what to do about it.

Last time I was in Providence I had huevos rancheros with a black bean quesadilla, ancho-chili sauce and home fries for brunch. It was delicious and something I probably won’t find anytime soon, so this has been the closest I’ve come to tasting it again. If you’re staying in on a weekend morning and need something to hit the spot this might be as good as you’ll get without ordering takeout.

This recipe for quesadillas is a little different from what you’d normally get since it uses corn tortillas instead of flour ones keeping it gluten-free. The ingredients are also a little healthier than others; for a more traditional recipe use twice as much cheese and half as much beans.

Black Bean Corn Quesadilla

Prep time: 5 minutes

Cook time: 5 minutes

Ingredients(Makes 1 serving):

2 corn tortillas
1/2 cup black beans, drained and rinsed
1/4 cup pepper jack cheese
Salsa
Sour cream
Guacamole

Method:

Heat a frying pan over medium heat.
Warm the tortillas in the frying pan in a little oil to keep them from sticking.
Move the tortillas to a plate.
Heat the black beans in the pan with a little oil to take out some of the moisture. Season them with salt or spices if desired.
Add the cheese in with the black beans and keep moving them to prevent them from sticking to the pan.
When the cheese starts melting, move the black beans onto one of the tortillas. Place the other one on top.
Serve with salsa, sour cream, guacamole, and any other toppings you’d like.

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Black Bean Mole Sauce

Written on July 25, 2013 by Wannabe Chef in Sauce

Every now and then I find an old recipe on this from a couple of years ago, poorly written with even worse photos. Especially when it’s one I loved I’m always tempted to make it again and give it the recognition it should have.

This recipe’s a one food-processor wonder. The ingredient list is a little long, but all you have to do is throw it together, blend it up, and heat to serve—that’s it. It’s also remarkably creamy and flavorful with a sauce for no fat or animal products in it, so it makes a great, healthy crowd-pleaser.

The finished sauce should be slightly spicy with a cool finish. You can adjust it by adding more or less cayenne and chili powder and as always season it to taste.

Black Bean Mole Sauce

Prep time: 5 minutes

Cook time: 0 minutes

Ingredients(Makes about 1 1/4 cups):

1/2 cup black beans, drained and rinsed
2 Tablespoons tomato paste
1 1/2 Tablespoons white vinegar
5 Tablespoons honey
1/4 cup sugar
1 Tablespoon cocoa powder
1 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon mustard seed
~1/4 cup water

Method:

Combine all of the ingredients except for the water into a food processor and blend until smooth.
Slowly add the water while blending until the sauce reaches a fluid yet thick consistency.
Heat up before serving. Scoop a generous amount over protein like tofu, tempeh, or chicken.

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Vegetarian Nachos

Written on May 9, 2013 by Wannabe Chef in Snack

If I could eat everyday like it were Cinco de Mayo I probably would. Melted cheese, margaritas, fried food—What else could you ask for?

We had a small party over the weekend. Nothing fancy. Premade margaritas, a piñata we named and so couldn’t hit, and nachos. That was really all we needed.

These are so simple you probably could make them everyday. I wouldn’t recommend it if I were a doctor, but as a food blogger I have no reservations. I think the best way to make these irresistible is using high quality salsa, sour cream and guacamole to get the perfect flavor.

Vegetarian Nachos

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 15 minutes

Ingredients(Serves 4-6):

8oz corn tortilla chips, preferably lightly salted or no-salt added
4oz shredded cheddar or Mexican blend cheese
3/4 cup black beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 cup or more salsa
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup guacamole

Method:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
Put about half of the tortilla chips in a layer on top of a baking pan or in a baking dish.
Cover the chips with half of the shredded cheese.
Add another layer of chips.
Sprinkle the rinsed beans on top of the second layer of nachos evenly.
Add the remaining shredded cheese over the bean layer.
Spread the salsa out on top of the cheese evenly over the entire tray.
Bake for about 15 minutes until the cheese has melted completely. Remove from the oven.
Plop the sour cream and guacamole on top of the hot nachos however you’d like. Serve immediately while still hot.

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Easy Black Bean Salad

Written on April 11, 2012 by Wannabe Chef in Entree

I’m usually too tired to want to cook at night; during the Summer I have the lovely excuse of not wanting to turn on a stove or a grill because it’s already too hot. That’s why I love bean salad recipes: You never have to cook them and they’re easy to throw together.

It’s really easy to make a big pot of rice and a bunch of bean salad and keep it for yourself to eat throughout the week. Most of the ingredients I used were canned, which is also a plus since I almost always keep them on hand. I’m not a big cilantro fan so I leave strong herbs like that out usually, but you could just as easily add them in. This would be best with a big plop of firecracker guacamole on top.

I left the onions out because I’m not a fan of the strong flavor. One way to get rid of the intense bitterness is to soak it in cold water for 5 minutes before dicing it.

Easy Black Bean Salad

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 0 minutes

Ingredients(Makes 2 servings):

1 1/4 cups black beans
1/2 cup corn
1/3 cup sliced cherry tomatoes
1/3 cup sliced olives
1/2 red onion, diced(optional)
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 Tablespoons freshly chopped cilantro(optional)

Method:

Take all of the ingredients and toss together until the salad is evenly mixed.
Serve with rice, tortillas, or over a bed of greens.

So simple and delicious. It feels like eating at chipotle only without the drive. What could be better than that?

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“What Are Capers?”

Written on August 17, 2011 by Wannabe Chef in Entree

Until I started reading food blogs, I would have sworn capers were a type of fish that came in a can that no one except for old ladies and Nigel Thornberry ate(Does anyone know what I’m talking about?). But then I saw them, green little pearls that sort of look like fish eggs, except they were being used in vegan recipes. That only confused me more.

One day I was working in my restaurant and our job was to make the salsa verde used as a pork topper. The ingredients for it are simple: Parsley, jalapenos, shallots, and capers. I asked my shift manager what capers were, figuring she’d know having gone through culinary school, but her guess was as good as mine.

I went home that night and looked it up online and found out that capers are actually buds from the caper bush that are pickled to give a tart flavor to—the perfect touch to any dish(Side note: How did people know things before the internet? Seriously, I have no clue). I was excited to find them in Trader Joes and even more excited to make a dish with them. I’m leaving town on Friday and had a few too many open cans of beans in my refrigerator so I combined them to make this delicious bean salad.

Bean Salad With Capers

Ingredients(Makes 4 servings:

1 cup chickpeas
1 cup black beans
1 cup cannellini beans
1/3 cup sliced black olives
1 1/2 Tablespoons capers, drained
1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
Salt to taste

Method

In a large bowl, toss together the beans, olives, capers, and oil until evenly mixed.
Taste and add salt if necessary. Serve room temperature.

If you want to make this starting with unopened cans of beans, use a full can of chickpeas, black beans, and cannellini, 1/2 cup of olives, 2 Tablespoons of capers and the same amount of oil.

Fess up: Did you know what capers are?

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Black Bean Mole

Written on August 11, 2011 by Wannabe Chef in Sauce

I spent this past weekend in Providence, one of my favorite cities around, and ran the inaugural Providence Rock N’ Roll half-marathon. The night before my friend and I went to Garden Grille Café, a vegetarian restaurant I can’t get enough of right on the edge of town. The special that night was cornmeal-crusted tempeh with a black bean mole sauce and roasted fingerling potatoes. There was nothing in that name I didn’t like so I got it and ate every last drop of sauce on that plate.

The mole was the best I ever had; it was also the first I ever had, but it was still incredibly good. Spicy, sweet, tangy—almost like a barbeque sauce but with a tantalizing bitterness. Of course I had to recreate it. Two days later I was making this in my own kitchen. I wasn’t sure if I had hit the nail on the head until I realized I was literally licking my food processor clean. At that point I figured it was pretty good.

This mole is about as untraditional as it comes. For one, you don’t cook it at all. It’s entirely made in the food processor. I also used spices instead of actual chilies because that’s what I had on hand. That makes this a super friendly recipe if it’s your first mole.

Black Bean Mole

Ingredients:

1/2 cup black beans, drained and rinsed
2 Tablespoons tomato paste
1 1/2 Tablespoons white vinegar
5 Tablespoons honey
1/4 cup sugar
1 Tablespoon cocoa powder
1 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon mustard seed
~1/4 cup water

Method:

Combine all of the ingredients except for the water into a food processor and blend until smooth.
Slowly add the water while blending until the sauce reaches a fluid yet thick consistency.
Heat up before serving. Scoop a generous amount over protein like tofu, tempeh, or chicken.

After dinner we went over to Wildflour and I ate one of these. It’s OK; I was carb-loading.

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Grilled Mango and Avocado Black Bean Salad

Written on June 24, 2011 by Wannabe Chef in Entree

I think I have a mango problem. A week ago, I had no idea if I liked them or not. I just happened to pick a few up because they were on sale and now I’ll eat one morning, noon, or night. I don’t even like many fruits! But mango—oh, mango.

Naturally, I had to find a way to eat mango whenever, wherever. That’s where this salad came in. I had to make it twice to figure out grilling was the key component. It tasted good raw but so much better grilled. The avocado dressing helps spread out the fruity flavor throughout the whole dish so that each bite is just as delicious as the last.

Grilled Mango and Avocado Black Bean Salad

Ingredients(Makes 2 servings):

1 mango
1 avocado
1 can black beans, drained
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 Tablespoon honey
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

Cut the mango and avocado into halves, removing their pits. Grill 1 of the avocado halves and all of the mango for 4-5 minutes until charred.

Puree the remaining avocado with the lemon juice, honey, chili powder, and salt.

Dice the grilled mango and avocado. In a large bowl, toss this with the black beans and avocado dressing. Serve at room temperature or chilled.

This is a great Summer dish with some brown rice and vegetables. I think next time I’ll add toasted coconut on top for an extra kick of tropical flavor. Now if only I had a mango cupcake recipe to wash it all down with.

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Black Bean And Kale Tacos

Written on June 6, 2011 by Wannabe Chef in Entree

If cooking has taught me anything, it’s how to cover up mistakes. That’s my favorite part of cooking as opposed to baking: It’s never too late to fix things. I wanted to make a black bean and tempeh taco filling until I realized the tempeh I bought had barley and rye in it which I’m severely allergic to, so that was a no-go.

The second mistake that day was the chickpea flour “grits” you see in the top left of that plate. That’s what you get when you mean to make a tortilla but the batter’s too thin and never comes together. It actually wasn’t bad with a little seasoning and would have been even better with some shredded cheese or Daiya. See? Never too late to fix things.

So even if this wasn’t what I intended to make at all when I started cooking that day, it still tasted incredible. And isn’t that what matters? Oh, that and looks. Looks always matter.

Spicy Cocoa Black Beans With Kale

Ingredients(Makes 2 servings):

1 can black beans, drained
1 cup kale, chopped
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons taco seasoning
1/2 teaspoon cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Combine the black beans and kale in a pan over medium heat with the oil already heated. Cover the pan for 2 minutes until the kale has steamed and changed into a deeper green color.

Remove the cover and season with the taco seasoning, cocoa powder, and cinnamon.

Serve hot into a tortilla wrap, taco shell, with rice or all by itself. Use a dollop of sour cream or Greek yogurt to mellow the spice if necessary.

I really like this, mistake or not. And that grits I could eat again and again with enough cheese on top. So don’t be afraid to make mistakes because you just might knock one out of the park anyway.

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