Enchiladas, Another Spin!

Too bad for all you lookers, I ate these buggers before I made it to my camera! Imagine then, if you will, the best looking enchiladas you can and add some love on top and you have it!

I cannot tell you the depth of my pepperoncini addiction. I eat these every day. And when it came to putting the entire contents of my fridge into these enchiladas, I did not spare them my peppers. You will like.

Grab from the Kitchen:
~ Tortillas, flour and flexible
~Cheese, mozzarella and cheddar, vegan or not
~Black Beans
~Green Peppers
~White Onion
~Pepperoncinis
~Kalamata Olives
~Favorite Enchilada Sauce, I like to make mine
~..... I think that was it...


So. Pile everything in the middle of your tortillas, place your mozzarella on top of the pile, drizzle a little sauce in there, roll it up and place it in your baking dish. Drizzle the rest of the sauce on top, put the cheddar on and bake in the oven for about 25 to 30 minutes at 350d. I always like to get the cheese just browning before I pull it out. I guarantee you will love the combination here and the veggies, being fresh but hot add a great flavor to the enchiladas that is usually missed when the veggies are sauteed first. Oh baby. Yum.

Black Bean Nachos

These are great to make for an entire meal. They are filling and fast and really healthy! I make these constantly and play around with the toppings. I intend to make them for the upcoming SuperBowl! Let me know what you think and if you have any variations that I can try!





You will need:
~14oz black beans, drained and rinsed
~1/2 lbs. ground beef, cooked and seasoned (I use a vegan substitute)
~1/2 cup diced tomatoes
~1 cup salsa verde (green chilies with white onions and seasoning)
~2 1/2 cups shredded cheese (your favorite flavor, I use a vegan substitute as well)
~Black Olives, drained
~Chipolte seasoning, store bought or homemade
~Your favorite corn chips or pita chips work really really well

Heat oven to 375d. and start preparing your ingredients. First layer the chips as deep as you want making sure they are places so the filling cant really reach t eh bottom of the pan. Then toss in the beans and spread out evenly. Next add the beef(or beef sub.) and the tomatoes. Layer the salsa on top of that and then the cheese, olives and seasoning. Bake until the cheese is melted and starting to brown. Grab a fork, you will need it.

Remember to play with your ingredients! Try different things in these. Imaging the chips as bread for a sandwich or lettuce for a salad. A blank slate waiting for you to make it spectacular! I made these on time with my sweet potato chili on top. It rocked! Sweet potato on nachos? Whew!

Mediterranean Inspired Sauce for Pasta

I made this up one evening, while trying to use up a few of the many jars of artichoke hearts I had accumulated. It actually turned out really well and with this dish I trained myself to like Kalamata or Greek Olives!



You will need:
Artichoke hearts, already marinated ( at home or store bought)
Kalamata Olives, pitted and diced
Boiler or pearl onions
Pimentos
Fresh Garlic, crushed
Fresh Basil, chopped
Fresh Oregano, chopped
Fresh Rosemary, plucked
s/p
Favorite Olive Oil

In the marinade, pour artichokes into skillet and heat. Add pimentos, onions, olives, s/p. Heat and let simmer. Simmer until half the liquid is left. Pour over freshly made pasta of any kind and add the olive oil, basil, garlic and oregano. I add these in last and off the heat because for this dish it is not necessary to add them before and they keep their flavor and the great benefits from the olive oil and garlic are only useful to your body when not heated to a high temperature. The heat from the sauce will be enough to help infuse the flavors but not enough to harm the benefits!

Baked Beans with Apple

After an evening of experimentation and heavy ingredients... This came forth!


You will need:

1 cup kidney beans

1 cup navy beans
*canned or boiled. If canned, drain before adding to heat.

1 medium white onion

1/4 apple, chopped


Tbl. Agave Nectar


4 cloves fresh garlic, chopped

salt to taste


extra virgin olive oil







Instructions:




In sauce pan or deep skillet, slice onion into long strips, add olive oil and heat on low. Add beans, salt and garlic. Let sit with onions on bottom and beans on top. Do not mix. Wait until beans are warm and add the Agave. Stir. Add apple and stir. Wait until heated all the way through.