Showing posts with label mexican. Show all posts

Meatless Monday - Black Bean Chimichanga

A staple in my household is the black bean.  We use black beans for tacos, chili, burritos, nachos and even chimichangas.  A Chimichanga is a deep fried burrito filled with assorted ingredients, sometimes served wet with a ranchero sauce or with sour cream and shredded cheese.  The story behind the name is that the founder of El Charro in Tucson Arizona dropped a pastry into a deep fat fryer by accident and started to say a curse word in Spanish, but quickly changed it to Chimichanga.

Here’s my variation of a Black Bean Chimichanga.   **remember to get organic if you can**

Photo Credit - Renee Olson
Ingredients
Flour Tortillas
1 cup white rice
½ cup frozen corn
¼ of an 8 oz pack of Cream Cheese
½ cup shredded white cheese
2-3 Tablespoons of Cilantro
1 can black beans
*Optional*
Red Pepper Flake
Ranchero Sauce
Onions
Sour Cream

Process

Photo Credit - Renee Olson


Add about ¼ of a block of cream cheese to a pot with the black beans and stir gently until melted.

Photo Credit - Renee Olson


Add the chopped cilantro and frozen corn to the pot and mix.  At this point I add about ¼ teaspoon of red pepper flake to make it a little hot.

Photo Credit - Renee Olson


At this point I start my pot of oil heating on another burner.  You’ll want to be really hot.  You’ll see the oil moving but not smoking.

Photo Credit - Renee Olson


After the mixture is mixed completely, grate some of the white cheese for the center of the burrito.  A bit extra can be grated if you plan to use a ranchero sauce and added to the top.

Add the mixture to the center of the burrito and fold the sides in first, then cover with the bottom and roll up.  This video shows a slightly different but good way to stuff and roll a burrito.  I recommend starting with less filling until you get the hang of it.  If it pops open in the hot oil it will be a mess!



Using tongs, carefully place the burrito in the hot oil.  You’ll want to hold it securely but not too tightly until the burrito is golden brown.

Photo Credit - Renee Olson


Place on a paper towel to drain.

Photo Credit - Renee Olson

After both are cooked plate them up and serve.  Cover the top of the burrito with the ranchero sauce, cheese and sour cream or just serve dry.

Photo Credit - Renee Olson


This is a great dish to use left over rice with.  I like to make rice and eggs for breakfast and keep the left over rice to add to my burrito for lunch.

Have you made one of my recipes?  I’d love to hear your feedback.  Want me to try one of yours?  Send me an email at Sosanna@sosannascloset.com.

Namaste & Blessed Be
Sosanna
)O(
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Meatless Monday - Black Bean Tacos


One of my favorite dishes is Black Bean Tacos.  Hubby and I actually ate these every night for dinner for an entire year.  We don’t have them that often now but boy, these are really really REALLY good.

If you can always try to get organic ingredients for these recipes.  In my photos below you’ll see that sometimes I have organic and sometimes I don’t.  It really depends on what’s on sale and what is available at the market.
So let’s get on to the recipe.

Photo Credit - Renee Olson

Ingredients
Fresh Baby spinach
Fresh Avocado
Fresh Cilantro
Fresh whole tomato
Cheese (I use white because there are no dyes & Cabot because there is no rBST)
Raw Yellow Corn tortillas
1 can black beans
Red pepper flakes
Sour Cream


Photo Credit - Renee Olson


I start out by getting my beans on the stove
Add the chopped cilantro and the chili flakes to taste (careful with chili flake, I only use about ¼ of a teaspoon) Just warm the beans through, if you boil them they’ll get mushy.


Photo Credit - Renee Olson


Next I start my oil heating on the stove in a shallow fry pan.

Photo Credit - Renee Olson

While the oil is heating I grate the cheese


Photo Credit - Renee Olson

Chop the spinach and tomato
And prep the avocado

Photo Credit - Renee Olson


Photo Credit - Renee Olson


The avocado is removed from the peel and mashed up with a bit of salt. Avocado can be tricky to work with so here’s a video on how to remove the pit, fan and dice.


Photo Credit - Renee Olson

Using a pair of tongs, I take the raw corn tortilla shell and lay it gently in the oil.  I use the tongs to shape the tortilla in to the basic taco shell.  Traditionally these shells are simply warmed on a flat top and served but I like the extra crunch.  I also use this same technique to make my own tortilla chips.  Just cut the circles in half twice and you have little triangles that you can fry until golden brown and salt. 



Assemble all the ingredients and serve!





A couple of tips use a butter knife to coat the inside of the taco shell with sour cream and the avocado, and then add the beans.  If you do it this way you’ll get a nice bit of the mixture in every bite.  I add my cheese next so it melts over the beans.  I've noticed too, that using the avocado I use much less cheese.  

Win win!

Another wonderful Meatless Monday! 
Enjoy!

Namaste & Blessed Be
Sosanna
)O(
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Meatless Monday - Vegetarian Nachos




One of my favorite types of food is Mexican food.  I love cilantro and chilies.  The bold flavors and savory cheeses are amazing.  I like the zesty flavors without the smoking hot spices that many restaurants add to their food.

It’s also one of the easiest cuisines to make vegetarian.  This recipe is a very versatile recipe and it can be modified in several ways. Meat can be added, Shrimp or different veggies.  You can also add rice to it and roll into a burrito, deep fry as a Chimichanga or covered with some red sauce and made into a play on an enchilada.

I do some simple things with my recipes to make them a bit better for me.  First, I only use white cheeses or those without any artificial colorings.  Next, I try to buy organics whenever I can.  Not only does it ensure that the product is Non-GMO but it also takes care of the BPA that may be used in canned veggies.  

At times buying organic can be expensive, but when you weigh the costs of medical treatment and the amount of food you need to eat to be comfortably sated, I believe it’s a fair exchange.

Ingredients


Photo Credit - Renee Olson

1 Can Organic Re-fried Pinto Beans – I get my organic canned veggies from Harris Teeter
1 Can Organic Beans – I usually use Black Beans but I was out, so I substituted Kidneys
1 Bag Organic Corn Chips – I get these from Target, they sale Blue, White and Yellow
1 Block of Monterey Jack Cheese – You can use any cheese here
4 Tablespoons of Sour Cream
½  Jar of Enchilada Sauce
1 package of cream cheese
½ Teaspoon  Chili Powder - optional
Fresh Cilantro - optional
Fresh Jalapeno - optional
Fresh Onion - optional

Process
On medium/low heat add the package of cream cheese to the pot and melt.
Grate the about 1 ½ cups of the cheese from the block and set aside.
Add the sour cream to the cream cheese in the sauce pan.
Open the can of re-fried beans and add to the sauce pan.

Photo Credit - Renee Olson

Add ½ of the enchilada sauce to the sauce pan.
Add ½ the grated cheese to the sauce pan.


Photo Credit - Renee Olson

Once the mixture is melted, open the can of beans and add to the mixture.
If needed use the rest of the sauce to thin.
After warmed through, add the optional items to taste.
Open the bag of chips and spread on a tray.
Spoon the “dip” over the top of the chips and sprinkle with cheese.
Serve.

Sometimes when I make this I prefer instead of serving on a plate as nachos, I leave the mixture in a bowl and use a dip.

Left overs can be stored in the fridge.  I like to make Curry a lot, so I usually have left over rice.  Adding the rice to the bean mixture and rolling in a flour tortilla is a great way to maintain a meatless diet but also a way of getting the most out of your dollar. 

Did you make this?  Have a variation on the recipe?  Want to share your own? Feel free to leave it in the comments or send me a message and I’ll post it here.

Namaste & Blessed Be
Sosanna
)O(







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