Bean Burrito with Potatoes

Blogging Marathon# 66: Week 3/ Day 1

Theme: Kid's Delight -- Lunch Box Recipes

Dish: Bean Burrito with Potatoes

We are starting a new week of blogging marathon today and my theme for this week is 'Kid friendly-Lunchbox dishes'. I am hosting Valli's Kid's Delight event this month with the same theme. Packing lunches for my kids is quite a task since they are quite picky and it gets really challenging to come up with dishes they would eat in school.

Both my kids have very different tastes. My son likes pasta, sandwiches or wraps to school whereas my daughter prefers rice with broccoli, brussels sprouts, carrot etc. With such varied tastes, it becomes so difficult to make something that both of them would enjoy. Luckily until last year, my little one was going to school only 3 days a week, but come September she will be going full time, which means packing lunch for both for the whole week.

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Sweet Potato Quinoa Chili

Blogging Marathon# 61: Week 3/ Day 3

Theme: Dishes using Root Vegetables

Dish: Sweet Potato Quinoa Chili
For the final day of this week's marathon I made a hearty and comforting chili with sweet potato, quinoa and black beans. This is a one pot meal that is great to make on a weeknight too.

Sweet potato is a tuberous root with a smooth skin with different colors like yellow, orange, red, brown, purple and beige. Even the color of the flesh differs from one variety to the other from beige, through white, red, orange and purple. Something new that I learnt is that the sweet potatoes with white or pale yellow flesh are less sweet and moist than those with red or orange flesh.

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Taco Salad (Vegetarian Recipe)

Blogging Marathon# : Week 1/ Day 2

Theme: Taste of Home Top 100 recipes of 2015

Dish: Taco Salad
Today's dish from Taste of Home top 100 recipes is this delicious Taco Salad. I wanted to make taco salad for a while now and when I saw it on the top 100 I knew I had to give it a try. Original recipe also has cooked meat but I omitted it and just made the rest of the recipe.

Key to this recipe is the dressing that is made with Thousand Island dressing. You can either use store bought Thousand Island dressing or make it yourself at home. I didn't want to buy a jar since I know I will let it sit in the fridge for god knows how long.

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New Year's Black Eyed Peas and Greens

Here's wishing you all very Happy and Prosperous New Year 2016!!
My first post for the year is this healthy Black eyed peas and greens recipe that is a take on Hoppin' John made in the American South.Eating legumes on New Year's day is a custom that many cultures around the world embrace. Lentils represent a wish for prosperity in Italy and Brazil. Black soybeans are on the menu for New Year's in Japan.Every culture has its own reason for the tradition, but it is a well known fact that beans are low in fat, cholesterol and calories, yet loaded with fiber, protein, vitamins and minerals.

In the south, black eyed peas are usually eaten on new year's. The peas represent coins, and are often eaten along side collard greens, which represent paper money. This recipe is from Vegetarian Times magazine and it uses kale instead of collard greens.

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Mexican Vegetarian Chilaquiles

Buffet on Table: Breakfasts across Countries

Day 21: Mexican Chilaquiles

After a simple Cuban breakfast, we move onto Mexico for a traditional dish called Chilaquiles. Lightly fried corn tortillas smothered with red or green salsa forms the basis of this dish.
Chilaquiles are generally served for breakfast or brunch and is usually made with leftover tortillas and salsas. They are also served as the last meal in a long lasting wedding party close to morning in what is known as a tornaboda (or after-wedding party).

I found this 'Chilaquile Manifesto' post and knew right away that the author means business and knows a lot about chilaquiles. So I just followed the recipe without futzing it around. The resulting chilaquiles were soooo good that even my picky eater son loved them and came back for seconds.

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Vegetarian Rice & Beans Burrito with Queso Sauce

Blogging Marathon# 53: Week 1/ Day 3

Theme: Tortilla based Dishes

Dish: Vegetarian Rice & Beans Burrito with Queso Sauce

For the last day of this week's marathon under 'Tortilla based dishes' theme, I made rice & beans filled burritos. We love Mexican food and I make it at least once a week. I always keep tortillas in stock for quick wraps, burritos or tacos.

Taco Bell happens to be our favorite fast food restaurant and before you start judging me let me tell you that is the only place where we get a decent choice of vegetarian options. Also they keep adding new items on to their menu unlike other fast food chains where we usually exhaust the dishes to try the first time we visit. Other Mexican fast food places we visit are Qdoba & Chipotle. So moral of the story is we love Mexican food and eat it quite frequently at home and outside.

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Roasted Vegetable Wrap

Blogging Marathon# 50: Week 1/ Day 3

Theme: American Sandwiches

Dish: Roasted Vegetable Sandwich Wrap

For the last day of this week's 'American Sandwiches' theme, I have a quick and easy Roasted Veggie Sandwich wrap. Wraps are less messy and very convenient to pack for lunches. Absolutely anything can go into a wrap, like these sandwich wraps I made for a picnic.

Today's wrap has roasted veggies in it with a healthy smear of mashed bean spread. Any vegetable can be roasted and used here. To expedite the roasting part, broiler is used. But if you want to roast them the slow, methodical way, then roast the veggies in a preheated 450°F for 20~30 minutes. Veggies can be grilled on a stove top or outdoor grill. The mashed bean spread can be easily replaced with some homemade or store bought hummus.

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Veggie Burger Sandwich (Beans & Veggie Burger)

Blogging Marathon# 50: Week 1/ Day 2

Theme: American Sandwiches

Dish: Veggie Burger Sandwich

Homemade Veggie burgers have a bad rap -- they are flavorless and have a very high tendency to fall apart while cooking. There are quite a few good quality frozen veggie burgers but most of them are soy based and have long list of unnecessary ingredients with very complicated spellings. There are a ton of recipes for veggie burger recipes on the Internet and after going through a number of recipes I found this recipe by Guy Fieri on the Food Network site.

This recipe uses 3 different types of beans; white, chickpeas and black beans. I used only 2 types of beans and the burger worked beautifully, it didn't fall apart on me and cooked perfectly in the skillet.

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Vegetarian Three Bean Stew with Roasted Potatoes

This winter doesn't seem to end any time soon. The temps have been hovering below freezing and it feels like a deep freezer when we step outside. I am sick of wearing all the layers and I feel bad for the kids who have to lug around their heavy book bag in addition to 3~4 layers of clothing. My son said he felt like a brick with all the layers. The weather man said it's going to be red hot over the weekend -- predicted temps are in lower 40's and he thinks that it is going to feel hot like summer.
Anyway our woes with winter will probably continue for a few more weeks. In the mean time, I made this hearty vegetarian 3 bean stew to warm me up. I tasted this dish at Medieval Times last year and it has stuck with me ever since.

Medieval Times is a place where you step back into Medieval times with epic battles, jousting tournaments along with a royal dinner. We have a location very close to our house and we had a chance to visit it last spring. My son had a great time there. I wasn't much into the battle but I enjoyed my vegetarian feast for sure.

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Vegetarian White Chili with Roasted Poblano Peppers

Can you make a wild guess of what could be the scariest thing that can happen to you right now? We experienced it recently -- it's not flu or ebola virus or zombie apocalypse!!!!!!! It is losing your internet, tv and phone service for an entire DAY. WHAT??? Yes, it happened to us yesterday and everything went haywire at home. You would think the adults will be the ones most affected, but it was the 7 year old who declared a state of emergency and wanted to leave the house. His dad who was (supposed to be) working from home was more calm than the kid who gets about 1 hour (if that) of computer time every day and he looked soooo lost without it. Let me tell you, we got a lot done in this 24 hours: the whole basement looks clean now and I finally got a chance to look through all the new cookbooks I recently got free from the very friendly librarian. 

Thankfully we are back in action with all the devices up and running and fully connected. I was worried I won't get this White Chili post in time for the upcoming Super bowl XXXXIX sunday. But here it is for those of you looking to make something different for the party this weekend. 

This Chili uses white beans instead of the more traditional red or black beans, hence the name White Chili :-) This recipe is from Vegetarian Times magazine and has roasted poblano peppers that add nice smokey flavor and depth to the dish.

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Fasulye/ Barbunya Pilaki (Turkish Everyday Beans) for #Food of the World

We are visiting the beautiful Turkey this month for the #Food of the World event. Turkish food happens to be one of my favorite and I'm always looking for opportunities to try new dishes. I borrowed 'The New Middle Eastern Vegetarian' cookbook by Sally Butcher from the library. As the book's name suggests it has vegetarian recipes from the Middle East and after reading through the book a couple of times, I am tempted to try almost all the recipes :-)
This Turkish Everyday beans recipe, Fasulye Pilaki, is traditionally made with white beans like navy or cannellini or Fasulye. Pilaki refers to the method of preparation: anything that is served cold with olive oil is a Pilaki.

I thought I had a can of white beans in my pantry but unfortunately I didn't, so I ended up using small pink beans in the recipe. I don't know the translation of pink in Turkish, so I'm going to stick with the Fasulye Pilaki (modified) name. My dear Turkish friend told me the name of the dish with red beans is called 'Barbunya Pilaki'. But no matter which beans you use, this is a recipe with simple ingredients and delicious flavors. So try it with whatever beans you have in the pantry.

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Honduras -- Baleadas (Vegetarian Recipe)

BM# 44: A-Z Cooking Series -- Around the World in 30 days
Country: H for Honduras

Dish: Baleadas 

We are going to Central America today to Honduras. Honduras was conquered by the Spanish in the 16th century and they introduced Roman Catholism and Spanish language along with numerous customs that have blended with the indigenous culture. The country became independent in 1821 and since been a republic. Honduras is best known for the production of minerals, coffee, tropical fruit and sugar cane, as well as for its growing textiles industry, which serves the international market.

The reason for choosing Honduras was when I started listing the countries my husband was away on business to Honduras and it ended up on the list. He was the one who suggested the dish too. Baleadas are one of the original and popular foods in Honduras. It is made of a thick wheat flour tortilla that is folded in half and filled with mashed beans and occasionally other ingredients. They are very similar to Mexican burritos in terms of fillings.

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Goa -- Feijoada (Vegan recipe)

Blogging Marathon# 39 - Indian States: Day 7
State: Goa
Dish: Goan Feijoada

Goa is India's smallest state by area and is located on the the weat coast of India. Goa is India's richest state with a GDP per capita 2½ times that of the country as a whole. Goa is a former Portuguese province; the Portuguese overseas territory of Territory India existed for about 450 years until it was annexed by India in 1961. Goa has beautiful beaches and breathtaking views that attract large numbers of international as well as domestic tourists.
My dad visited Goa a number of times for business purposes and he used to bring back bags full of cashews. Visiting Goa is something I would love to do sometime. Even though I cannot swim and will probably won't enjoy the beaches, but I want to explore the historic and artistic cathedrals and churches.

Cuisine: Goan food can be divided into Goan Catholic and Goan Hindu cuisine, each of which has its own distinct taste, charateristic and cooking style. Pork is widely used in dishes among the Goan Catholics. While the Hindu cuisine is partly pescetarianism and partly lacto vegetarian. Hindu cuisine mainly uses less heat, tamarind and kokum for souring and jaggery for sweetness. They use coconut oil as the medium of cooking.
Staple Food: Rice, Fish
Specialties: Vindaloo, Xacuti, Khatkhate, Feijoada, Bebinca etc.,

Today's Dish: I have tried quite a few Goan dishes in the past. I love the use of spices in goan dishes and my absolute favorite is this Xacuti. For this edition I wanted try the famous Goan sweet dish called bebinca, but changed my mind at the last minute and made yet another famous spicy curry from Feijoada.

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Veggie Nachos

Being a food blogger, one thing that I sure don't do is post recipes ahead of a specific holiday/ festival. I wish I was more planned in that aspect. Coming from apparel retail background, I've seen companies start working on a season at least 9 months in advance, ie., designers start working on Summer designs (that will be in the store some time in April) some time in September of the previous year.
In the same way, there are quite a few bloggers who start posting recipes for summer before the end of spring. While they are thinking ahead, I am usually posting recipes I made at the end of winter (!!!!!!), that is how organized and planned I am.
Well today's dish was meant for Super Bowl Sunday and of course it is a week late. I saw Rachael Ray make this on her show and the use of veggies on nachos sounded tasty and I wanted to make it for my nacho-loving son. I actually served it for lunch (!!!) along with cilantro-lime rice.

These are infact a healthier version of traditional cheese laden nachos. Most of the cheese is replaced with sauteed veggies. My son liked them quite a lot and I'm sure I'll be making these often in the future.

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Vegetarian Pupusa

Blogging Marathon# 37: Week 1/ Day2
Theme: National Dishes from around the World 
Dish: El Salvador -- Pupusa

Years ago when I first started watching Food network, Rachael Ray used to make dishes from different countries/ cuisines and called them 'Passport meals' to those countries. Which means you don't need a passport to visit those countries physically, all you need is a well stocked pantry and you can easily transport to that country by enjoying the local dishes right at home. That is how my interest in trying different cuisines started.

So today I made a Passport meal to El Salvador by making their national dish, Pupusa. This is another dish that has been on my to-make list for a while now. I used the recipe from Viva Vegan by Terry Hope Romero.

Pupusas are stuffed, grilled tortillas from El Salvador. The fun of pupusas is in the combination of hot grilled masa harina, tasty fillings, tangy tomato sauce, and cool Salvadorian style coleslaw known as curdito. So this dish has quite a few components and can be time consuming to make. But luckily the curdito and the tomato sauce can be made up to 2 days in advance.

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Beans Patoli (Beans Paruppu Usili)

For Day 2 of BM# 18, I have this protein rich veggie dish that is one of my favorites. Patoli or paruppu usili is a delicious dish with the goodness of lentils and the veggie. I love the use of lentils in almost any dish and this dish with the ground lentils gives it an earthy, mild taste is very addictive.

Growing up my mom used to make patoli by sauteing leftover kandi pachadi with onions and it tasted divine with steamed white rice and a good dollop of ghee. 

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Mili Jhuli Subzi (Mixed vegetable Curry)

We are on for another round of Blogging Marathon. Thanks to Valli for accommodating 14 more enthusiastic bloggers as Group 2 for the 2nd round of 7 day-Blogging Marathon. Basically there are 2 groups of bloggers posting everyday for the next 7days. It was a lot of fun doing the marathon the first time around and I’m looking forward to this round as well.

To keep things simple, I chose 30 minute meals as the theme. I’m always looking for quick and easy meals for weeknights since I don’t have the energy or the time to slave for hours in the kitchen after a long work day. I try to make a big batch of sambar, dal, a rice dish and have some dosa or idli batter ready, so at least I can make something quick for my son and think about what else to make for dinner (this way he’s calm enough and lets me think of a menu). I also keep store bought frozen rotis handy. For more useful tips on making quick weeknight meals, head over to Nupur’s post, it has ton of information on how to organize and plan meals and some of her tried and tested menu ideas. Do check it out. I wish I could be at least 50% organized like her.

Coming to today’s recipe: I pressure cook a lot and I’m looking for recipes that are made in the pressure cooker. I own 4 pressure cookers of different materials (steel/ aluminum & hard-anodized) and sizes. So when I saw this recipe in Tarla Dalal’s newsletter, I wanted to try it right away. This is a great side dish with tons of veggies and super yummy gravy. We loved the slightly spicy gravy and the perfectly cooked veggies. This goes well with both rice and rotis. So all you need is to cook some rice (in another pressure cooker) or heat up those (frozen) rotis and warm up some of that leftover dal. Dinner’s served!!

Recipe adapted from Tarla Dalal.com
Ingredients:
Carrots – 1 medium, chopped
Potato – 1 medium, chopped
Green Beans – ¼ cup, chopped (I used frozen chopped beans)
Cauliflower – ¼ cup, chopped
Green peas – ¼ cup
Corn – ¼ cup
Tomatoes – 2 medium, chopped
Tomato Paste – 1tbsp
Chickpeas or White kidney beans (Cannellini beans) – ½ of 16 oz. can, rinsed and drained
Cashew Butter – 2tbsp
Salt – to taste
Sugar – 1tsp (optional)

To be ground to paste:
Onion – 1 medium, chopped
Poppy Seeds – 1tbsp
Thick poha – 1tbsp
Peppercorn – 8-10
Cinnamon stick – 2” piece
Cloves – 2
Dry Red Chilies – 3
Coriander Seeds – 1tbsp
Cumin seeds – 1tsp
Garlic cloves – 3
Ginger – 1” piece

Method:

• Soak poppy seeds & poha in water for at least 10 minutes. Chop your veggies in the mean time.
• Grind all the ingredients under paste into a smooth paste using little water.
• Heat 1tbsp oil in a pressure cooker and add the prepared paste. Sauté on low flame for 5-7 minutes or until the paste doesn’t smell raw anymore.
• Add tomato paste and chopped tomatoes. Cook until mushy, about 3 minutes.
• Add the veggies along with salt, sugar (if using), cashew butter and 1 cup of hot water, mix gently; close the lid and cook on high flame for 2 whistles (takes about 8-10 minutes).
• Let the steam release naturally, and then open the lid.
• Garnish with coriander leaves and serve with either steamed rice or roti.

Original recipe used paneer & cream, I used cannellini beans & cashew butter instead. Add paneer along with the other veggies to the pressure cooker and proceed with the rest of the recipe. Mix in cream after cooking the veggies.

Check out what the my fellow Marathoners are cooking today!!
30 Minutes Meals:
Priya Mahadavan
Pavani

Seven Days of Salad:
lla

For Ongoing 7 Events:
Priya Suresh
Harini

Kids Friendly:
Vatsala
Jay

Seven Days of Rice:
Veena Krishnakumar
Priya Vaasu

And the Rest:
Divya Vikram
Kamalika
Padma Rekha
Suma Gandlur

Sprouted Matki Pulao (Moth Beans Pilaf)

I bought matki (moth beans) to make Sia’s hot & spicy Kohlapuri Misal, but I ended up making this mildly flavored pulao from Tarla Dalal’s site. I love Tarla Dalal and I used to watch her cooking show on Sony TV in India (this was long long time ago). I remember liking the co-host Sudhanshu too.. handsome guy.. ahem.. back to what I was saying about Tarla Dalal, her cooking looks very homemade, nothing fancy and this recipe is simplicity at its best. Just a couple of cloves, grated ginger and ground coriander mildly flavor the rice. Can be served with a paneer curry or even raitha.

Ingredients:
Moth Beans – 1 cup, sprouted
Basmati rice – 1 cup
Spring onions – 4-6, chopped
Green pepper – 1 medium, chopped
Ginger – 1” piece
Green chili – 1
Cloves – 2
Ground Coriander – 1tsp
Red chili powder – 1tsp
Hing – pinch
Salt – to taste

Method:

Cook basmati and let cool.

Parboil matki sprouts; I pressure cooked them for 2 whistles and they were perfectly cooked, not mushy at all.

Heat 1tbsp oil in a sauté pan; add cloves and hing and sauté for a minute.

Add ginger, chili, spring onions, green pepper and cook till the veggies are tender.

Add coriander powder, red chili pd and matki.

Sauté for 4-5 minutes until all the flavors have mingled. If using parboiled moth beans, then add ½ cup of water and cook till the beans are tender.

Once the beans are tender, add rice and salt; mix well and serve.

This is my entry to April ’09 edition of Weekend Wokking-Sprouts started by Wandering Chopsticks and being hosted by Kits Chow.

Chickpea & Pinto Bean Chili

Its still a little chilly in our part of the world and this chili is right for those nights where you just want something to warm you up.

Ingredients:

Chickpeas – 1 cup, cooked
Pinto beans – 1 cup, cooked

Onion – 1 medium, chopped

Celery – 1 stalk, chopped

Green Pepper – 1 medium, chopped

Garlic – 2 cloves, minced

Crushed tomatoes – 1 14 oz. can (I used crushed tomatoes with basil)

Bay leaf - 1

Vegetarian bouillon cube – 1 (optional)(I used 1tbsp vegetarian chicken base)

Chili powder – 1 tbsp

Cumin powder – 1tbsp

Salt & Pepper – to taste

Method:

• Heat 1tbsp oil in a sauce pan; add onions and garlic and sauté until translucent.
• Add celery and green peppers; cook until veggies are tender, about 10 minutes.
• Add the beans, crushed tomatoes, bay leaf, chili powder, cumin powder, bouillon cube (if using), salt and pepper; simmer for about 15-20 minutes on medium-low flame. Adjust seasoning and serve warm.

Bare Burrito

I like burritos without the tortilla because it is so much more convenient to eat out of a bowl than having to wipe your mouth after every bite, especially when eating in public. These tortilla less burritos sold as Bare Burritos in Baja Fresh and Burrito bowl in Chipotle grill are my absolute favorites. All the fixings of burrito layered in a bowl instead of wrapping a tortilla.. super convenient. Also don’t you think that bowls hold more food than tortillas??

These bowls are layered with flavored rice, beans and roasted veggies; garnished with cheese, sour cream, guacamole and salsa (I had none of these on hand, but they are still super good). I make them for our lunch boxes and also for last-minute guest dinners.

Ingredients:
Long grain Rice – 1 cup

Bean Layer:
Beans – 2 cups, I used a cup each of Black and pinto beans
Salsa – 1 cup, homemade or store bought, I used store bought Mild salsa
Onion – 1 small, finely chopped
Garlic – 2 cloves, minced
Cumin powder – 2tsp
Chili powder – 2tsp
Salt – to taste

Veggie Layer:

Peppers – 2 medium, chopped into 1” pieces (I used green peppers, but any color pepper would taste great)

Onions – 2 medium, chopped into 1” chunks
Zucchini – 2 medium, chopped again into 1” chunks

Method:

• Cook rice with ½ tsp dried oregano and tiny bit of salt. Cool and keep aside.
  
• For the bean layer: Heat 2tsp olive oil in a sauce pan; add onions and garlic till translucent. Add beans, salsa, 1 tbsp chili pd, 1 tbsp cumin pd, salt and ½ cup water; simmer on medium-low heat for 10-15 minutes.
  
• For the veggie layer: Heat a large sauté pan on medium-high heat till very hot; add 1tbsp oil and the veggies; sauté them till nicely browned and cooked through. Season with the remaining 1 tbsp of cumin and chili pds. Try not to crowd the pan with the vegetables, add in single layers and cook in batches if required. Alternatively all the veggies can be grilled for that smoky flavor.
  
• To serve: Spread a layer of rice, top with beans, veggies, rice, salsa and guacamole in that order. Enjoy with sour cream and grated cheese.
  

This is my entry to Vaishali @ Earth Vegan for her It’s a Vegan Month – Mexican.