Pinned there, done that challenge #1 - Hearty Black Bean Quesadillas with Lazy Spanish Rice

Sorry about the lack of blogging this summer.  Too much medical rubbish made for little blogging enthusiasm.   I was struggling with keeping the whole joy thing,  There has been much to be joyful about this summer, too... friends having babies, weddings, showers.... numerous cupcakes for the various events. Then Hubby and I took an amazing trip to San Francisco together.  He is an awesome traveling companion!

I'm a huge fan of Pinterest (perhaps addict would be the better word) but while pinning is fun, it will be much more fulfilling to actually do the recipes and projects I have pinned.  Therefore, I will be adding a new feature, "Pinned there, done that."  It will be a way to highlight many of the great ideas out there on Pinterest. And I don't know about you but I while I know that most all of the projects "pinned" are done by actual people, I like to know what ones can actually be done by amateurs, like me. I hope you will join me in our new adventure.
There are some other changes to come.  I hope you will continue to hang out with me!

Tonight I made a recipe I had pinned from BudgetBytes.blogspot.com (I have it pinned on my healthy cooking board).  I loved the idea of making a hearty black bean quesadilla!  I made them fairly close to her recipe but served with a side of creamy jalapeno ranch dressing that I made up.  Yummers! While it was filling enough to eat just the quesadilla (especially for mom and I) I served some lazy Spanish rice for the hubby and the boys to make it even more hearty.  Budget Bytes is an awesome blog and has several things I've pinned along the way.  Visit her site and share some blogger love :-)

  
 Fiesta Quesadillas
adapted from hearty black bean quesadillas by BudgetBytes.blogspot.com

2 cups frozen corn (thawed)
2 cans black beans, drained and rinsed
1 red onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 packages taco seasoning
1 tablespoon dried cilantro
1 tablespoon bacon grease, optional
1/4 cup to 1/2 cup chicken broth, or water
10 whole wheat tortillas
2 cup cheddar and Monterey Jack cheese blend

In a large skillet,heat bacon grease over medium heat and add corn, onion and garlic; allow corn to slightly char and onions and garlic to lightly brown.  Add black beans, cilantro and taco seasoning, add broth (I felt this allowed the mixture to be less dry but is totally optional) and let simmer for fifteen minutes.

To assemble:
I like to slightly warm my tortillas to work with them.... especially if they have been in the fridge...
On half the tortilla add sprinkle some cheese (the amount is up to you... I used less than 1/4 cup per quesadilla) top with 1/2 cup bean mixture and sprinkle with a bit more cheese; fold over.  Repeat with remaining tortillas.  They can now be frozen once they are assembled.

I didn't freeze any as I made half of them and used the remaining black bean mixture with Spanish rice side dish I had made for a future casserole.
For cooking the quesadilla, I lightly sprayed a skillet with cooking spray and allowed the quesadilla to crisp up a bit.


Lazy Spanish Rice
1 cup long grain rice
2 cans Campbell's tomato soup
2 1/2 cups water
1 medium onion, diced
1/2 pound hamburger
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt

In a medium skillet, over medium heat, brown hamburger and onion; drain off excess grease.
In a 2 quart casserole dish, add rice, tomato soup, chili powder, smoked paprika, cumin and salt; mix together and add water.  To the rice mixture add the hamburger and onion mix and stir together to completely mix.  Cover and cook in microwave on high heat for ten minutes; cook for another fifteen minutes on half power (I have to use power fifty on my microwave).  Let set for five minutes then uncover, stir and serve.

The Daring Kitchen: Black Bean Burgers

Blog-checking lines: The Daring Cooks’ February 2012 challenge was hosted by Audax & Lis and they chose to present Patties for their ease of construction, ingredients and deliciousness! We were given several recipes, and learned the different types of binders and cooking methods to produce our own tasty patties!

I've been wanting to try my hand at making black bean burgers for a long time now.  Pure laziness on my part is the only reason why I haven't made them yet.  Man, I could kick myself for not making them sooner!  These burgers were AWESOME!  They will definitely be something that I will make to keep on hand for myself.  Don't worry dear husband... your patties will forever be with meat :-)  I used canned black beans and rinsed and drained them.  The trick is to let them drain completely.  You do not want to be adding excess moisture to these.

Annies Eats even had a recipe for Light Brioche Burger Buns that I made... Supper yummy!  What a great challenge this was.

Black Bean Burgers

adapted from Annies Eats

Yield: 6 burgers
Ingredients:

for the crumbs:

1 cup panko
 2 tsp. olive oil

For the bugers

2 (15 oz.) cans black beans, drained and rinsed, divided
2 large eggs

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper (I like the added heat so increased it from the original 1/4 teaspoon)
1 red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded and finely diced
1 1/2 teaspoons dried cilantro flakes, (you could easily add 1/4 cup fresh chopped cilantro but I'm not that huge of a fan and prefer the taste of the dried)
1 small onion, finely diced

Directions:

I think this was the key to making these burgers over the top, so don't omit this step! Toast the panko in a skillet, over medium high heat with 2 teaspoons of olive oil.  Stir frequently until the crumbs turn a light golden brown.

In a large bowl, mash 2 1/2 cups of the beans until almost smooth.  I had to use a fork to get them started and then was able to use a potato masher to finish it up.  Whisk together the two large eggs; add to beans. Add the remaining ingredients, including the toasted panko, and blend well (I used my hands for this).

Divide the mixture into 6 equal portions, about ½ cup each. Lightly pack into 1-inch thick patties. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook until well browned on both sides, about 8-10 minutes total.  Serve warm.

Burgers can be made and refrigerated ahead of time, up to 24 hours.  

Taco Soup

As the temperatures begin to drop, I begin to rely more on the hearty dishes.  I love soup and am always happy when I can find a recipe that pleases most family members(In this family, someone is always bound to dislike something!).  I put together a taco soup recipe that is a combination of a what I liked in a couple different recipes.  I make our own salsa so I used that in place of the picante sauce one of the recipes called for.  My husband, much as I love him to death, dislikes "vegetables" in his foods so I end up putting a lot of vegetables in the blender for him.  Its a happy medium.... I get my flavors and he gets his "chunky vegetable free" food. 

I doubled this recipe and used one can of white beans and one can of red kidney beans.  I only used one can of diced tomatoes and used roasted petite diced tomatoes.  In the past I have used the addition of the pepper, chili powder and cumin but my salsa is so spicy I didn't feel it needed the addition.

I served this up with some fresh cornbread, yummy! 

Taco Soup

adapted from taste of home

1 pound lean ground beef or ground turkey

2 teaspoons olive oil,   I omit and  just use a bit of cooking spray in my pan

1 medium onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 cups chicken, vegetable or beef broth   I prefer chicken broth
1 can (15 ounces) black beans, white beans or kidney beans,rinsed and drained
1 can (14-1/2 ounces) diced tomatoes
1-1/2 cups picante sauce or salsa
1 cup uncooked  pasta
1 small green pepper, chopped   I omitted this because my salsa was heavily seasoned
2 teaspoons chili powder        I omitted this because my salsa was heavily seasoned
1 teaspoon ground cumin        I omitted this because my salsa was heavily seasoned
sour cream, optional

shredded cheddar cheese, optional

Directions:

In a medium  skillet, brown and drain ground beef; set aside. In a large saucepan, saute onion and garlic  until tender. Add the broth, browned beef,  beans, tomatoes, picante sauce, pasta, green pepper and seasonings. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 10-12 minutes or until pasta is tender, stirring occasionally. Serve with cheese and sour cream. Yield: 6 servings.

Secret Recipe Club: Vegchiladas

Another entry into the Secret Recipe Club begins. At the beginning of each month you are assigned a blog to browse through and recreate a recipe. I had the wonderful pleasure of exploring Eilonway's  blog, "My Emu is Emo."  The blog is a combination of her love of cooking and music.  Not only did I get to view fabulous sounding recipes but I was also challenged to expand my horizons with new musical sounds.  At first I was reading all her fun posts without even thinking about finding a recipe!  I have to admit that I am a huge lover of music and have quite the eclectic collection of my own.  After reading my fill, I went back through her blog and focused in on choosing a recipe.  It just so happened that my mom, who lives with us, has been craving nachos and so I zeroed in on her post for " Vegchiladas get earthy, spicy and complex."  As luck would have it, we had all the ingredients on hand.  It was very good and a nice alternative to having meat on your nachos.


Vegchiladas (click on the link for her versions)
2 yams
1/2 an onion
1 can beans (I used S&W Pinquito beans with onions, peppers, cumin and garlic)
tortilla chips
cojito cheese
salsa  (I used my own canned version)
sour cream

Clean and  dice your yams.  I halved my yams diagonally then cut into half again. I then cut into 1/4 inch chunks. Drizzle with olive oil and bake at 350 degrees F., until tender. It me about 1/2 an hour for yams to get tender.
Dice onion and place into warmed medium skillet with 1 tablespoon olive oil.

Drain beans and add to cooked onion.
Layer chips with yams

Top with bean and onion mixture.  Add cheese layer.  Repeat.

Serve with salsa and sour cream, if desired.