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.

Taco Deviled Eggs

The Annual Deviled Egg Pageant strikes again! This year the eggs that I made were not technically winners, unlike previous years' eggs (last year's roasted garlic deviled eggs, and the first year's dill and stone-ground mustard deviled eggs). I like to believe this is because this year's competition was even more fierce than previous years (and plus, I was told that everyone was a winner). Either way, these taco deviled eggs were absolutely delicious and added a spicy twist to a classic dish. This recipe makes 24 deviled eggs.

 

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.

Garlic Butter Spaghetti Squash

I've made approximately one million spaghetti squash recipes in the past few months, and I'm not stopping now. I picked up a small squash for this awesome recipe with two of my favorite things: garlic and butter. This recipe serves two and was inspired by a recipe over at livelovepasta.

Slow Cooker Lentil Tacos

I went to the beach with a group of 15 friends this weekend and I offered to cook dinner for everyone. The main conundrum was that I wanted a meal that could feed everyone (meat-eaters and vegetarians alike) and that wouldn't require me to sit inside and cook all day while everyone else was lounging in the sun. Enter: the slow-cooker. Tacos also allow for everyone to customize their meal. I made a ton of lentils for this (I had to use a 6-qt slow cooker), but half (or even quarter) the below recipe for a smaller yield. This recipe is based off of the great one over at Kitchen Belle.

Potato Fajitas

This is one of those 'I have too many CSA items and don't know what to do with it all' posts. Not to mention, my sister, who lives in Kansas, just told me that she is hosting a Mexican food party this weekend & I am super-jealous so, that is how this dinner was born. Luckily, fajitas are one of the easiest - and most delicious - ways to use up a ton of produce (if you have zucchini, squash, or any other hearty produce, toss those in too!). The recipe below was used to feed two hungry folks. Enjoy!

Roasted Vegetable Salsa

I came into a large bounty of fresh vegetables this week, and started brainstorming all of the foods that I can make with them before they go bad. I settled on salsa because it's delicious, easy to share, and uses a ton of veggies! This recipe makes two jars' worth. Enjoy!

Guest Post: Old Bay Cheese Crackers

This weekend, I want to welcome a good friend, Martine, as my guest blogger. She's an amazing (!) cook & is always trying something new in her kitchen. In fact, be sure to go check out her awesome vegetarian food blog. I am thrilled that she offered to guest blog for me (and keep an eye out because I'll be guest blogging something for her this month too!).
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Despite being born and raised in Maryland, I've never eaten crab. What can I say? I was a bit of a picky kid, and then I became a vegetarian fairly early in life. And you know, when I hear people gushing about crab season, I think I'm probably better off not knowing what I'm missing. As a way to cope, I've convinced myself that what everyone's actually excited about is just using the crabs as a vessel to consume hypertension-inducing quantities of Old Bay.

Like any Marylander, I'll pour Old Bay over my french fries and popcorn. I'll put it on anything involving eggs. I'll dump it in a bloody mary, and I even used it to infuse vodka for holiday gifts last year. I brought a can with me when I studied abroad in college because I couldn't bear the thought of five months without it.

And yet, non-Marylanders just don't seem to have the same fervor for my spice blend of choice. My main squeeze Andrew, who is from Ohio, claims that his mother has had the same dusty can in her kitchen cabinet for "probably like twenty years." How does that happen?

Old Bay and sharp cheddar is one of my favorite combinations, so it only made sense to add it to a zippy cheese cracker. I like to use the 30% less sodium version, but the regular will work -- you just will want to start at 1/2 a teaspoon and give your dough a taste test before adding more, because the cheese is very salty as well. This recipe is adapted from smitten kitchen's cheese straws.

Baked Mozzarella Sticks

This recipe for baked mozzarella sticks is the best because baking is less messy than frying & makes eating cheese sticks (a little) more healthy. This recipe came from Skinny Taste and honestly, I was worried because there are lots of fail photos from people trying to recreate this recipe (the key is to make sure that they are frozen when you cook them). So, just follow the directions below & you'll be enjoying delicious mozzarella sticks in no time!

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.)

Sweet & Spicy Roasted Chickpeas

A few weekends ago I went to the amazing Birroteca & ordered spicy roasted chickpeas for an appetizer. The entire table devoured them within minutes! They were spicy with a sugary, salty taste to them and we were all in love. I've been since looking for a similar recipe and I think I found it in The Lean Green Bean's blog. This recipe is really easy to make & doesn't cost very much at all. My rendition makes enough for about two to three people to finish in one sitting.

Guest Post: Sweet Potato & Bean Fritters

This week, welcome my friend Sam, a health & wellness blogger, who made these amazing sweet potato & bean fritters. She is also currently running an awesome indiegogo campaign to bring whole food nutrition to cancer survivors, so be sure to check it out & pledge if you can!
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You have probably seen this awesome Sweet Potato Veggie Burger recipe by Kathy over at Happy.Healthy.Life pinned all over Pinterest.  I've basically taken that recipe and made a few modifications to that to better fit my preferences. This recipe is crispy on the outside, creamy, sweet & tangy on the inside. The coconut oil really adds to the depth of flavor, something you wouldn't find when using other cooking oils. This recipe makes 6-8 medium-sized fritters.

 

Cauliflower Cheddar Soup

I have been sick all week and this soup has proved itself as a perfect comfort food. It has a deep savory flavor and will warm up your whole body. Making it did feel a bit time consuming, but I threw it in my slow cooker so I didn't have to actively watch it. I do wish the photos would have turned out a bit better, but let's blame it on my being sick at the time! This recipe makes about three cups and is based off of this Closet Cooking recipe.

Portobello Sliders

Inspired by a recipe on The Curvy Carrot's website (what an awesome blog name, by the way), I made these delicious and filling portobello sliders for dinner. My recipe is slightly different from hers, since I had different ingredients on hand. My recipe makes four sliders (and feeds about two people). Enjoy!

Portobello & Veggie Fajitas

Veggie fajitas are awesome because they're really filling and fairly low-calorie. Not to mention that they're super-easy to cook, as long as you have a skillet of some sort on hand. This is a highly customizable meal, so throw in any types of veggies, top with any type of sauce, and season as mild or spicy as you'd like. This recipe makes two generous servings.

Mock-Tuna Chickpea Salad

I have heard this concoction called a variety of things (my favorite is coined by The Kitchn as "Chickpea of the Sea"), but whatever you call it, it is a delicious protein-packed meat alternative. This recipe is a modification of a few different recipes including one by The Apron Archives and The V Word. My recipe will make three to four servings.

Homemade Taco Seasoning

Make this one time and you'll never buy those store-bought packets again (those things are packed with sodium anyway!). This seasoning is great for tacos, chili, fajitas, or whatever you'd like to make a little spicier. I just filled a jar and keep it in my pantry with the other spices, and it also makes a great gift. The recipe below gives you the spice ratio, and you can make as much or as little as you'd like.