Quick Lunch Series: One Pot Mexican Quinoa

This can be made for lunch or dinner. And it’s perfect for that office day meal!

Ingredients:

1 cup frozen Latino blend vegetables–corn, black beans, onions and peppers
1/4 cup Quinoa
6-8 sliced heirloom tomatoes
1 jalapeno minced
1-2 garlic cloves minced
1/2 avocado
1 tsp olive oil
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp paprika
some chopped fresh cilantro

Add oil to a pan, add garlic and jalapeno and fry for 1 minute. Rinse and add Latino blend vegetables and fry lightly for 2-3 minutes. Rinse and add quinoa and mix well. Season with salt, cumin and paprika. Add 1/2 cup water and bring to a boil. Reduce flame and cook on medium low till cooked, adding water as needed.

Garnish with some cilantro, and serve warm topped with salsa, avocado, jalapeno and sour cream.

Quick Lunch Series: Southwestern Black Bean Salad

This is an old one… still tasty and extremely satisfying for an office day lunch.

Ingredients:
1 can black beans drained, and rinsed
1 whole corn, peeled, steamed,and striped
1/2 red pepper chopped
1/2 yellow pepper chopped
1/4 cucumber chopped
1 tomato chopped
1/4 red onion chopped
1 jalapeno minced
1/2 bunch cilantro chopped
1/2 avocado chopped
juice of one lemon or as needed
salt, fresh ground pepper and cayenne pepper as needed

Toss everything together and enjoy chilled!

Simply, filling and enjoyable 🙂

 

Quik Lunch Series: Quinoa and Black Bean Salad

Since I discovered Quinoa, it has become one of my favorite super foods. I have enjoyed all recipes I have tried so far. This one is another easy one for that office day meal.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup quinoa ( I used red, but can use any)
1 can black beans (drained and rinsed)
1/4 red onion chopped fine
1/4 cucumber chopped
2-3 mini tricolor sweet peppers
8-10 grape or cherry tomatoes
some chopped cilantro
salt to taste
juice of one lemon
dash of paprika
fresh ground pepper

Bring 1-1.5 cups of water to boil. Rinse and add quinoa. Reduce flame and cook on medium low till all the water evaporates and the quinoa is cooked. Meanwhile prepare the vegetables and black beans. Toss all ingredients including the quinoa, add salt and pepper and a dash of paprika.

Enjoy!

Spicy Spaghetti Squash with Black Beans

Continuing on the exploration of Spaghetti Squash recipes I came across this one from Whole Foods Market that turned out delicious!

Ingredients:
1 spaghetti squash
1/2 cup red onion chopped
1/2 cup red (or any other) bell pepper chopped
1-2 jalapenos chopped (based on preference)
1 cup of black beans (for a change I used canned ones drained and washed :-))
1/2 cup of corn (frozen)
salt and chilli powder
lemon juice
cilantro to garnish
cherry tomatoes (optional)

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Cut the spaghetti squash into two halves along the longer side and bake for 50 minutes. Cool the squash and using a fork scoop out the flesh and set aside.

Meanwhile saute the onion and peppers in a pan with some olive oil for a few minutes. Add corn, black beans, salt and chilli pepper and continue cooking for a another minute. Add the cooked squash and lemon juice. Optionally you can add some sliced cherry tomatoes. Leave for a minute or two.

Garnish with some cilantro and serve hot.

You can see the original recipe this is based on here.

Black bean soup

Ingredients

1 lb black beans
3 small peppers
4 garlic cloves
2 medium sized onions
4 tablespoons tomato sauce
4 tablespoons olive oil or salad oil
salt to taste

Pick black beans over, wash and soak over night. Cook in same water  for at least one hour.

Heat a little oil in heavy skillet. Add washed  and chopped onions. Take seeds out of peppers and slice fairly fine. Add minced garlic and tomato sauce. Add a little water to prevent sticking. Cook slowly until tender. Add all the cooked black beans along with the water; cook slowly for maybe two hours or until beans are done. Add salt to taste. Serve with white or yellow rice. Or better yet, take some pickled jalapenos, salsa  and a table spoon of sour cream in a bowl. Add the warm black bean soup and serve hot.

Scrumptious!

(recipe provided by Gauthami)