Black Bean Burgers...

This is our supper for tonight...and it is awesomely delish!

 

Black Bean Burgers

 

1 quart black beans (mash with fork but not completely)

2 c quick oats (I pulse my rolled oats in the food processor a few times)

1 onion, chopped fine (I use the food processor after the oats come out)

about 5 or 8 sprigs cilantro (chop with onion in food processor)

3 cloves garlic (chopped with onion)

3 T ground flax seeds mixed with 1/2 c water (set aside while you chop the veggies)

1/2 c whole kernel corn

1 t chipotle pepper, ground

1 t salt

1/2 t oregano flakes

1/4 t ground black pepper

 

 

Mix all together and shape into 1/3 c balls. Roll in whole grain flour or bread crumbs and place on greased baking sheet. Flatten balls with your palm to make burger shaped patties.

 

 

 

Bake at 400* for 20 minutes. Flip and bake another 10 minutes.

 

Enjoy with burger fixings.

 

Or cut a burger into

strips and top a

Mexican style

salad:

 

shredded red and white cabbage

onion

shredded carrots

diced tomatoes

Pico de Gallo

Almond Cream

Taco Dressing

What a treat!

Roasted Broccoli...

A recipe on my menu for this coming week: recipe and photos credit of Girl Makes Food.
 

                                          

 

I find people often feel tempted to use frozen veggies to roast.  I have tried this with broccoli, just because I was curious what would happen (a normal curiosity, no?).  It will brown, but it also gets a little soggy, so if  you can deal with that go for it.  In a pinch I say its not the worst thing, but fresh is preferable in my book.

Health highlight of broccoli:  while broccoli may seem like a common, unremarkable veggie, it is actually a powerhouse of healthy stuff.  Broccoli contains a compound that has been shown to be effective in preventing certain cancers.  The nutrients in broccoli also help to promote and regulate detoxification in the body, which is fantastic.  Broccoli is also a strongly anti-inflammatory food.

Ingredients:

2 heads Broccoli (chopped)
1 tablespoon EV Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper (to taste)
Juice of 1/2 Lemon

Instructions:

• Preheat the oven to 450 degrees
• On a cookie sheet lined with parchment toss the broccoli with the oil, salt and pepper
• Spread evenly in a single layer
• Roast until the broccoli has browned in some areas
• Squeeze the lemon juice over the broccoli
• Serve and enjoy!!!

PS
I plan to enjoy my broccoli with an Asian sauce of some sort. My favorite right now is Sweet Chili Sauce (be sure to get it without MSG or it's 'cousins' like autolyzed yeast extract or torula yeast extract, etc).

Vitamin Water

It has been years now that our family stepped away from drinking much more than water. So many of the drinks on the market are loaded with artificial coloring, sugars, and other harmful-to-health ingredients. What a waste of money, both in the purchasing and also in the dentist/doctor bills these help to incur!

We also avoid drinking fruit juices on a regular basis because they are not a whole food. The fiber in the fruit actually slows down the absorption of sugar to the body, thus making it a better choice to eat the whole fruit rather than drinking the juice.

 

But sometimes water gets boring. Here is a fun thing I tried this afternoon (has been on my to-do list for a few weeks).

Into a gallon jar, place

4 thinly sliced lemons and 1/2 cup

chopped mint leaves. Fill with water, place a lid on the jar and store overnight in the fridge.

 

 Enjoy a flavorful, refreshing beverage for a different twist on drinking water.



Eat Your Veggies...

 

It's National Eat Your Vegetables Day.

Did you have yours today?!

Honey Roasted Chickpeas



I have been wanting to try this treat for awhile already and finally this afternoon, I gave it a whirl. Out of the many versions of roasted chickpeas there are to try, I went straight for the sweet one first. :-) It turned out to be a big success and I can't wait to use the leftovers on my salad.

Honey Roasted Chickpeas

 

Into a bowl place 1/2 c honey and the juice of 1 lime.

Add 2 T olive oil, a few shakes of chipotle pepper and salt.

 

Toss together and add 1 quart chickpeas

(rinsed and patted dry)

 

Toss the chickpeas to coat and spread evenly (in single layer)

onto a greased 9x13 baking sheet.

 

Bake in a 425* oven, shaking pan every 20 minutes or so

until chickpeas are brown and crispy on the outside

(about 45 minutes).

 

Cool and store leftovers in the fridge.

I am told that the 'crunchy' leaves in 48 hours.

 



Potato Pizza

Here is what we are having for supper tonight:

Shred 4 medium potatoes (scrubbed and unpeeled) and place them into a lightly sprayed 9x13 glass pan.
Spoon 2~3 cups (?) pasta sauce over top, stirring it down into the potatoes as well.
Saute in a bit of vegetable broth or water: 1 large red onion, 1 bell pepper, 2 cups medium chopped mushrooms. When vegetables are tender, add 3 or 4 cloves pressed garlic. Stir and spread over potatoes. Add sliced black olives, lentil sausage, chopped spinach (if desired), and sprinkle with nutritional yeast.

Bake in 400* oven for 30 minutes or until potatoes are soft.

 

Serve with a large garden salad for a spectacular meal.

Pizza Bites

photo courtesy of Eating Well

These go great with that salad that is highly recommended to be 'the main dish'. "-)

In olive oil or veg broth, sauté 1 large onion and 1 bell pepper, diced. When vegetables are tender, add 3 or 4 cloves pressed garlic. Stir and sauté another minute. Remove from heat.

In a large bowl, mix:

1 1/3 c whole grain flour (I used spelt)
4 t baking powder
1 t dried oregano flakes
1 T dried parsley flakes
1/2 t salt

In another bowl mix:

2/3 c almond milk or vegetable broth
2/3 c crumbled cheddar cheese (optional)
2 large eggs (or try the egg replacer of 2 T ground flax seed to 1/2 c water per egg)
4 T tomato paste
2 T kalamata olives (optional)

Mix all ingredients together til just mixed. Fill greased muffin tins about 2/3 full and bake at 400* for about 15 minutes or til a toothpick in the center comes out clean.

Cool in pan for 5 minutes then move muffins to a wire rack to finish cooling.

Yields about 12 to 14 regular sized muffins