Black Bean Raspberry Dip

I grew up close to Manhattan, Kansas (The Little Apple!). Tucked away in Aggieville is this unassuming restaurant called So Long Saloon and they make this killer black bean dip. It has a layer of spicy raspberry preserves and a layer of savory cream cheese. I've been thinking about this dip for many years (I haven't lived there since 2007, to give you an idea). A few months ago, I figured I'd search online to see if anyone else had experienced this magic appetizer and, to my surprise, one of my favorite food bloggers has, and wrote a recipe up for it. My recipe below is an adaption of hers (the main difference is that I've written out how I create the raspberry layer, because I couldn't find the store-bought version she uses). I also apparently didn't take any photos of my process (which is very unlike me), so I guess I have an excuse to make this again (& then update this post). I hope you enjoy this dip as much as I have!

Veggie Migas

Apparently, migas is one of my new favorite things. I haven't really been exposed to them too much growing up (which, I'm sure to some of you out there is completely blasphemous). They are fairly easy to make and super-filling and delicious. You can add any veggies to it that you want, but I kept it fairly simple for this recipe. I used a recipe from Cookie & Kate (lovelovelove that blog) as a guide and this recipe makes enough for two large servings.

Black Bean and Cheese Enchiladas

Enchiladas are great for entertaining a few folks or for making on a Sunday and wrapping up a few for your lunch over the week. The best thing about this recipe is that you can toss in any extra vegetables or proteins that you have lying around. This recipe makes at least 12 enchiladas.

Guest Post: An Omnivore’s Quest for the Best Vegetarian “Meatball” - Part II

Welcome back, Chris! I look forward to one of your Friday Night Meatball get-togethers because these sound amazing.
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You may recall back in September I wrote a guest post for this blog in which I compared three vegetarian meatball recipes, in the hope that one of them would be my go-to recipe for vegetarian friends at our version of Friday Night Meatballs. You may also recall that none of the three recipes completely captured my endorsement.I’m back now after more time in my secret subterranean meatball laboratory*, and I’m happy to report that I have a recipe for vege-meatballs that I can proudly serve my guests. The recipe is a modification of Whole Foods’ Spaghetti and Vegan Meatballs recipe. This recipe won my competition but had some flaws that I couldn’t tolerate. 

With a scale of 1 (hideous) to 5 (excellent), the original recipe scored as follows: 

Preparation 4.5, Flavor 3.5, Texture 4, Sturdiness 3, Versatility 5. 

This gave it an overall score of 4.0, and a clear win over the other two recipes.  My modifications needed to focus on flavor and sturdiness, hopefully without compromising the other characteristics too much.  Sturdiness, in particular, was a big problem – the Whole Foods meatballs could not be trusted not to turn to mush in my marinara.

The original recipe has a body of black beans, brown rice, cremini mushrooms, sunflower seeds and spinach.  It adds garlic, onions, basil and oregano for flavor.

Guest Post: An Omnivore’s Quest for the Best Vegetarian “Meatball”

Please welcome my friend & amazing home (& Instagram) chef, Chris. He decided to do the dirty work for us in finding the best veg meatball in all of the land. Welcome, Chris!

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I love meatballs.

I love vegetables too, and eat lots of them, but I’m a pretty committed omnivore. And I reserve a special place in hell for the commercial vegetarian burgers and meatballs that attempt to duplicate the taste of meat – usually with a list of unpronounceable chemicals. Why bother, when vegetables taste so great? Now if a veggie meatball can taste great without loading up on artificial flavorings, and come close to the texture and, well, meatballness of a real meatball, then we’re talking.

A friend alerted me to a wonderful blog post by Sarah Grey on the Serious Eats website. The post, Friday Night Meatballs: How to Change Your Life With Pasta describes her 9-month experiment with “Friday Night Meatballs” in which her family extends an open invitation to friends, relatives, social media contacts, and whoever to come by every Friday night for a dinner of spaghetti and meatballs. It is a simple yet powerful idea; have company for a sit-down meal once a week, where those from all areas of your life meet and break bread, and take a regular break from your busy life and social isolation.

To keep it simple week after week, you need to serve something that (a) is easy to prepare in large quantity ahead of time, (b) you can specialize in and do well, and (c) almost everyone likes. Meatballs with pasta fits these requirements very nicely.

So my wife and I, with the cooperation and help from a few good friends, decided we wanted to try this. I’m hoping it changes our lives, just a bit.

This leaves a small but important dilemma. While I cook meatballs very well, a significant fraction of my friends are vegetarian, lactose-intolerant, and/or celiac. And both of my recipes feature copious amounts of meat, cheese and bread.

My turkey/spinach meatballs.
Needed an ironic photo for a vegetarian blog.

Hence, my search for the ultimate vegetarian meatball recipe.

Four-Bean Salad

Okay, so you know three-bean salads. They're delicious, healthy, full of protein. Well, I upped the ante and added a fourth bean. I know; I take some pretty intense culinary risks. This healthy and filling salad is perfect with tortilla chips, on a green salad, on pasta, or on its own. Enjoy the protein and the hearty taste! This recipe is based off of a Real Simple recipe and makes a huge bowl.

Slow Cooker Three-Bean Chili

I made some chili for a friend's work competition early last month. It was super-easy, since I just put it in my slow cooker all day and let it go. To make it stand out amongst the competition, I used cocoa powder (think mole sauce) and three different kinds of beans (since I wasn't using any meat). This recipe makes about five full servings.

Black Bean Vegetable Soup

Break out your slow cooker for this one. Low & slow is how I chose to make this black bean soup, for a few reasons, but the biggest being that I didn't want to have to watch the soup while I was watching Battlestar Galactica. I know, I know. This recipe makes about four servings & is perfect for the cooler temps that we've been experiencing lately. Enjoy!

Avocado Summer Salad

This is a delicious, protein-rich meal that is easy to pack up for lunch at work, a party side dish, or a snack in the middle of the day. Serve by itself, with tortilla chips, or roll up into a flour tortilla as a taco or burrito.  Feel free to add cayenne pepper, or homemade taco spice into the mixture as well to make it a bit spicier. This recipe is my own, but it does remind me of Sweet Potato & Spice's Cowboy Caviar. (Also, a quick disclaimer: the light in my kitchen went out so the lighting makes the photos look different than what I normally shoot.)

Guest Post: Anthony's Perfect Black Bean Burger, served California-style

Please welcome my partner and best friend, Anthony, for the next guest post! The best part about this recipe is that I got to taste the result and it was incredible. Enjoy!
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This is my favorite recipe for preparing black bean burgers. I'm not exaggerating when I say that I've tasted few recipes that even come close to this one. It's flavor- and texture-rich, and even better, it's easy to prepare. It is the perfect dish to serve with a beer for a late-spring supper on the porch or rooftop, but it is hearty enough to fill you up during these colder months too. This recipe is adapted from "Spiced Black Bean Burgers" at epicurious and makes four burgers.

Vegetarian Chili

Tonight was one of those nights where I have a lot of food in the house, but nothing to really make. So, I took a bunch of leftovers and things in my pantry and decided to make a chili. This is really easy (especially because I used a slow cooker), and because I used a meat substitute, your carnivorous friends will enjoy it as well. I made a small volume of chili, but you can multiply the recipe as much as you want! This recipe makes three to four servings.

Guest Post: Vegan Lentil Chili

Do you remember my friend, Ben, who made the delicious veggie quesadilla a few weeks ago? He's back with a cozy vegan chili recipe for us!
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It is the holidays, which means it is chilly outside and what better way to combat the cold than with some delicious, hearty chili. Now that I got the obligatory “chilly/chili” joke out of the way I can say that this recipe really was a true delight. I wanted something new and was lucky to stumble across this recipe online. I should note that their recipe calls for quinoa and I am using French lentils because I thought I had some at home and did not feel like returning to the grocery store. Lentils proved to be an excellent substitution. I will be trying it with quinoa in the near future to compare. The recipe you read below is pretty much straight from their website. I just made adjustments to mirror my cooking style.

This does produce a lot of chili, but the great part is that it freezes well. So if you are having a get-together, this will certainly satisfy the masses and be a crowd pleaser. I was able to serve 2 others and still have a plethora leftover, which I divided up into small plastic bowls and put into the freezer. Again, I was blown away. Growing up with one of the best chilis (my dad’s) out there, it was hard to believe that another recipe could be as delectable. 

Black Bean & Pineapple Tacos

I just started a Biggest Loser-style competition in my workplace. You may have figured by reading this blog that, while I don’t eat meat, I don’t always eat healthy (see the beer mac & cheese or all of the homemade biscuits I've been devouring). This program will be a great opportunity to start eating better. This lunch was filling and high in protein. This recipe makes two tacos, which are served at a cool temperature.

Prep Time: 10 minutes (if pineapple is already prepared)
Cook Time: None

Ingredients

Two (2) small fajita-sized soft flour tortillas
Two (2) tablespoons of black beans, drained and rinsed
One (1) tablespoon of tomato, chopped
One (1) tablespoon of fresh pineapple, in chunks
1/2 tablespoon of goat cheese

Directions
Heat tortillas on the stove.
While tortillas are heating, mix black beans, tomato, and pineapple in a mixing bowl.
Once tortillas are warm, spoon mixture into tortillas.
Top with goat cheese.
Enjoy!

Black Bean, Avocado, Goat Cheese Tacos

These tacos have everything in them that I love about summer, and they are probably one of the most delicious dishes that I've cooked since starting this blog. I recommend sticking pretty closely to the recipe, and don't forget to add the honey-lime drizzle at the end. This recipe yields six tacos.

Pair with: Margarita on the rocks

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 5-10 minutes

Ingredients
3/4 can of black beans -- do not drain or rinse
One (1) avocado, halved
1/2 cup goat cheese
Two (2) cloves of garlic, minced
One (1) teaspoon of olive oil
1/2 small lime, for juice and zest
Two (2) teaspoons of honey 
1/4 teaspoon of ground red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon of cumin
Six (6) small flour tortillas, slightly heated -- the original recipe used corn tortillas

Directions
Heat garlic, cumin and red pepper flakes in a heated skillet.
Add black beans and heat until most liquid has cooked out, about 5-10 minutes.
Brush avocado half with olive oil and heat face-down in separate pan over medium heat.
Remove avocado and slice.
Whisk together lime juice, zest, and honey. Set aside.
Spoon black beans into tortilla, followed by avocado slice (one or two for each taco), and then goat cheese on top.
Drizzle lime and honey mixture lightly over each taco.
Devour.