A Recipe for Black Beans

I decided to introduce another element into this blog besides travel and scrapbooking...food!  I have been a vegetarian for 17 years and consider myself a pretty healthful eater.  And I like to refute the statement that vegetarians don't get enough protein as often as possible, protein is not a problem for us, I promise. Over the past 5 years or so I have started cooking a lot more and exploring the flavors I like.  I like to attempt a new recipe every week and have yet another pinboard of recipes to try here. Much to my surprise people seem to enjoy my cooking (though I do think husband-face tires of tofu). So I think I will share some favorites on this blog every once in awhile.

This first recipe I'm posting is a variation of something my parents have made since I was a little kid.  Before I came vegetarian their version contained ground beef.  Over the years years I have altered it into my own version.  I make it at least once a week for myself and my sister has me make her big batches that she freezes.  Iron is one nutrient I do have trouble with as a vegetarian and one serving of this dish gives me 85% of what I need in the day.  Today it is a hit whenever I make it for friends. I made enchiladas with it one night and my friend Kendall said, "This tastes like it should be bad for you but it's healthy."  The added bonuses are that it is also vegan and a very inexpensive dish to make.

I should state that I like spicy food and most of my recipes are going to be somewhat spicy (though not taste bud burners). And one more disclaimer, food photography is not my strong suit so I apologize for the sub-par photos.

This recipe makes a lot, this will usually last my husband and I about 4 meals.  I usually either make a quesadilla with them or serve them over couscous.

-4 cans black beans, drained & rinsed (rinsing canned black beans gets rid of the excess sodium that is in them)
-4 cups water
-3 garlic cloves, minced
-2 cubes vegetable bullion (I use Knorr)
-1/2 red onion, finely chopped and sauteed (or more if you want)
-2 jalapeños, finely chopped
-1 red bell pepper, finely chopped
-2 cups frozen corn
-2 T chili powder
-1 tsp cumin
-1/2 tsp cayenne
-1/4 tsp thyme

-In a large pot combine the black beans, water, garlic, vegetable bullion, chili powder, cumin, cayenne & thyme.  Bring to a boil and then turn down to medium heat. Stir every few minutes to keep things mixing.

-Saute the onions in a little bit of oil until their cooked down and start to brown, then throw them in the boiling pot. Add the jalapeños and bell pepper to the pot as well.

chopped bell pepper & jalapeños

-Boil for about another 15-20 minutes, stirring every few minutes.  When it's started to cook down and looks like it's about 5 minutes from done (this all depends on how much liquid you want in them, I don't like a lot) add the corn. When they get to the consistency you like serve over rice, make enchiladas or a quesadilla or invent your own dish with them.

5 minutes from done

A yummy, healthy and filling black bean quesadilla (501 calories with a whole wheat tortilla)

Here's your nutrition info, 1 serving is about one cup. Also note that the sodium content is less then this as the black beans are rinsed, there was no way for me to calculate that.