Chipotle Veggie-Bean Taco's

Chipotle Veggie and Bean Tacos

-modified from a recipe in the Vive le Vegan! cookbook

So, after the advice of my doctor we have started eating less meat and more veggies. I kid you not I would eat meat three meals a day. Bacon or Sausage for Breakfast, meat sandwhiches for lunch and dinner was usually roast chicken, beef or pork. Seriously! EVERY day! Now, this is not unusual for most Americans but even the bible says "Everything in it's Season". Pretty sure it's not hunting season at every meal.

Gradually we have made the transition. I cook only two meals a week with meat products. TWO. And we have our usual family dinner at my in-laws. So three meals per week with meat. That's it. I asked my husband today how he's liking it. He says it's ok. Not bad. And there have definately been some less than awesome meals involved. (I apparently can NOT make lentil soup.) But there have been ones that even my kids will beg for. This is one of those.

You will need:

1 28oz can diced tomatoes, drained (if you want a smokier flavor use the roasted tomatoes)
1 1/2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup red onion, finely chopped
2 large cloves garlic, minced or pressed*
1/2 teas salt
pepper to taste
1 tsp chipotle peppers very, very, very finely chopped or just the "sauce" from the can*.
1/2 to 3/4 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 to 2/4 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground mustard or mustard seed
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1 cup green bell pepper, diced
1/3 cup celery, diced
1 cup cooked beans (I use black or kidney)
1/3 cup frozen corn kernels
1/2 teas honey or agave nectar

corn or flour tortillas
favorite taco toppings (Mine are red lettuce, tomatoes and avacado"

Press the drained tomatoes to remove as much excess liquid as possible. In a large skillet over medium heat, heat the oil. Add the onion, garlic, salt, pepper, chipotles and all the dried herbs and spices. Stir and cook for 5-6 minutes, then add the green pepper and celery. Stir and cook for another 3 minuts. Add in the remaining ingredients and cook until heated through.

Heat up your tortilla's how you like them, and enjoy with your favorite taco toppings.

* I no longer mince garlic for any recipe I make. I use my garlic press. It is awesome. I think I use it at least four or five times a week. I also buy my garlic peeled either from Costco or from Trader Joes. Yes, I use a ton of garlic. :)
*(I freeze the leftover chipotles from the can and when I need it take it out of the freezer and cut it while frozen. No thawing needed and you get just the small amount you need for recipes)
* You can make this less spicy by omiting the chipotles or turn it up a notch by upping it to 1 Tbsp. I like it spicy, my kids... eh, not so much.

Recipe- Fruit Glazed Chicken with Mashed (Not a) Turnip and Potatoes

Ok. I will admit it. I've never eaten a turnip before (well, at least to my knowlege). That's got to be weird, right? How does one go thirty years with never having eaten a turnip? So I bought one. And then I was stumped. Just how does one eat a turnip? Well, apparently you can mash it. And if you mash it with potatoes it's very good. Not sure my kids were impressed but I thought it was rather tasty.

ETA- Well, come to find out folks what I made was a PARSNIP. And not a turnip. I'm still a turnip virgin. ROFL.

And yes this is a picture of my dinner. And yes I did already take a bite. I was really hungry. When I'm really hungry I tend to either be incredibly snarky or I forget to take pictures. I would guess that I was somewhere inbetween those two last night. Oh, and taking dinner shots in the Pac NW and having them look good is... nigh on impossible. But I digress. Here's how I made my dinner last night. It was super easy.

You need potatoes and a turnip...

I'm nearing the end of my food supply so it's regular old bakers. Peel, cube and throw into a pot. Cover with some COLD water and boil until tender. Here's an action shot...

At the same time as all this is going on you need to get your chicken in the oven. Start by lining your broiling pan with foil and preheating your oven to 350 degrees. Then you need to make a rub. I used 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper.

Stir it up and rub on your chicken... I used one whole chicken cut into pieces. But this would work for chicken breasts as well.

Put your chicken in the oven and bake for 25 or so minutes until done through. Melt in a saucepan over medium low heat about 1/4 cup of your favorite jam. I prefer blackberry but you know... the plum might have been good as well. (All our jam is 100% local grown and homemade!) I was going to take a shot of this but blackberry jam in a black saucepan... it didn't work.

Glaze your chicken using a brush... mmmm looking good already!

Now the fun part... back in the oven it goes! This time about 4" under the broiler and for about 5 minutes. While that's cooking you can mash your potatoes and turnip.

I mashed mine with about 1 tbsp of brown sugar, 1/2 stick of vegan butter and 1/4 cup of Almond milk. If your not on a gluten/dairy free diet feel free to substitute with the real stuff. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Remove the chicken from the oven and let rest for about five minutes. You should always let your meat rest before cutting it. Serve with your mashed potatoes and turnip and a side of beans.

I will not lie... my kids... eh... well... hmmm...

BUT I LIKED IT!

Trader Joes Tuesday- Chicken, quinoa and black beans!

This week I picked up some Organic Red Quinoa (pronounced keen-wa for those of you who were wondering just HOW do you say that word), Organic Sweet Yellow Corn, Kidney Beans, and some onions from TJ's. (Ok, so my husband grabbed them before he left for the day but you get the picture.)

On hand I had the  black beans, crushed garlic, sea salt, cumin, black pepper, chicken, chicken broth and canola oil. I wish I had some cilantro but you know, it tasted pretty darn yummy without it.

In my rice cooker I made up a batch of the red quinoa. For this recipe I used 3/4 cup quinoa and 1 1/2 cups of chicken broth. I also put in the cumin and salt and pepper. Although this could be added at any step.

While that was going I chopped and browned the onions and garlic. I also cubed the chicken.

Don't forget to drain and RINSE your beans. You want to do this because it actually cuts down on how... well musical you will be later in the evening. :)

Remove the onions from your pan and add the chicken and cook until done. About 5 minutes or so. Add the beans and the corn and cook until they are warm. Mix the corn/bean/chicken in with the quinoa. I just added it all to the rice cookers pot so I didn't have to dirty yet another dish.

Plate it up!

And that my friends is another yummy, delicious, and best of all healthy and hearty gluten and dairy free dinner using mostly Trader Joe ingredients.

Trader Joes Tuesday

As some of you may or may not know my dh is a manager at Trader Joes. It's really a great job. I just wish his store was closer! I love TJ's like nothing else and I especially love all the yummy things I can get just by making a simple phone call to my husband while he's at work!

This week I bring to your table a quick, easy and best of all Gluten and Dairy free dinner. My 10 month old especially loves it. All of these ingredients you can find at your local Trader Joes.

Fried Polenta w/ Marinara Sauce

Start with your basic marinara sauce...

Simmer it on your stove. Add whatever goodness you like to it (it's really delicious as it comes though).

Next slice up your polenta in half inch slices and fry (don't forget to spray your pan) over medium heat until it's nice and golden on both sides.

Place the fried polenta on your plate and top with the marinara.

Serve with some Sugar Peas and Roasted Garlic Hummus

And enjoy!