Cilantro Lime Rice in a rice cooker

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups rice, rinsed and drained
3 cups chicken broth
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained (optional)
3 Tbsp mild diced green chiles (canned)
1 jalapeno, chopped and seeded
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp onion powder

Once rice cooker is done add:
Salt and pepper to taste
2 Tbsp lime juice
1/2 cup loosely packed cilantro

Directions:
Add rice, chicken broth, 1 tsp garlic powder, 1 tsp ground cumin, 1/2 tsp onion powder, 1 seeded chopped jalapeno, black beans, 3 Tbsp mild diced green chiles.  Set rice cooker to white or brown rice cook setting on rice cooker.  Once rice is cooked, season with salt and pepper to taste.  Stir in 2 Tbsp of lime juice and 1/2 cup loosely packed cilantro, chopped.

Refried Beans

First I'll apologize for the picture. I don't know how to make refried beans look good? I'm sure there is someone out there that could do it, but I don't have that skill. This is a very healthy version of refried beans and so easy to make. I made them in a crockpot but I just bought a pressure cooker and my sister says they are very good made in the pressure cooker and a lot faster. I will be trying them out for sure! This recipe is courteous of allrecipes.

Ingredients:
1 onion, peeled and halved
3 cups dry pinto beans, rinsed
1/2 fresh jalapeno pepper, seeded and
chopped
2 tablespoons minced garlic 5 teaspoons salt
1 3/4 teaspoons fresh ground black
pepper
1/8 teaspoon ground cumin, optional
9 cups water

Directions:
1. Place the onion, rinsed beans, jalapeno, garlic, salt, pepper, and cumin into a slow cooker. Pour in the water and stir to combine. Cook on High for 8 hours, adding more water as needed. Note: if more than 1 cup of water has evaporated during cooking, then the temperature is too high.
2. Once the beans have cooked, strain them, and reserve the liquid. Mash the beans with a potato masher, adding the reserved water as needed to attain desired consistency.

Balsamic Black Bean Salsa

I saw this salsa and immediately knew I would love it! Black beans, corn, and balsamic vinegar--all ingredients I love. It is really good. I found this over at Your Homebased Mom.

Ingredients:
1 – 15 oz. can black beans, drained and rinsed well
1 -15 oz. can whole kernel corn, drained well (I used frozen corn)
1/2 medium red onion finely chopped (about 1/3 cup)
1/2 C finely chopped fresh cilantro
1- 7 oz. can salsa verde (I used Herdez brand)
juice of 1 lime
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 C balsamic vinegar
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Mix all of the ingredients together in a medium bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let the salsa marinade for a few hours or overnight before serving. Drain most of the liquid from the salsa before serving. Serve with tortilla chips

Bean Quesadillas

Ingredients:

1 can refried beans

Tortillas--2 for each quesadilla

shredded cheese

Directions:

Spread refried beans on a tortilla, add cheese on top then add another tortillas on top. Spray skillet with cooking spray and place tortilla to cook. When the tortilla is slightly browned flip over to cook the other side and to finish melting the cheese. You are done!

Baked Southwestern Egg Rolls

These eggrolls were soo delicious! Absolutely loved them and I loved that they were baked. You can even feel Good about eating them because they are good for you too. I got this recipe from Annie's Eats blog.

Ingredients:
2 cups frozen corn, thawed
1 (15oz) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 (10oz) pkg frozen chopped spinach, thawed
2 cups shredded mexican cheese blend
1 (4oz) can diced green chiles, drained
4 green onions, chopped
1 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1 package egg roll wrappers (abt 24 total)

Directions:
In a large bowl, combine everything but the egg roll wrappers. Mix well to blend. Lay an egg roll wrapper out on a work surface so that one of the corners is pointing toward you and place 1/4 cup of the filling in the center. Fold the tip closest to you up over the filling, roll a bit, then take the points pointing outward and fold them in toward the center. Continue rolling into an egg roll shape until a small part of the remaining point is still free. Dip a finger in water and lightly brush on the edges of the free corner. Finish rolling and press to seal closed. Repeat with the remaining wrappers and filling.

Preheat the oven to 425. Lightly oil a baking sheet with cooking spray. Place the sealed egg rolls on the baking sheet seam side down and spray the tops of the egg rolls with cooking spray. Bake for about 15 minutes, or until lightly brown, turning halfway through baking. Serve warm with salsa.

Super Bean Burritos

These were very good! Especially when served with sour cream, guacamole and salsa. I got this recipe from the blog Real Mom Kitchen. I'm sure it will become a regular on our menu.

Ingredients:
1 cup rice (or 2 cups already cooked rice) I used brown rice
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 can green chiles
1 tsp cumin
salt and pepper to taste
3 Tbsp tomato paste
2 cans (15oz each) pinto beans, drained and rinsed (I used one pinto, one black bean)
1 1/2 cups water
1 (10oz) package frozen corn
6 green onions, finely chopped
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
16 10 inch flour tortillas (I like mission brand carb balance plus)
2 cups shredded cheese (Monterrey jack or cheddar)

Directions:
Cook rice; set aside. Meanwhile, heat oil in large saucepan over med. heat. Add onion, garlic, chiles, and cumin; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are softened and golden, being careful not to let the garlic burn. Add tomato paste and cook, stirring for 1 minute.
Add one can of beans and mash gently in the pan. Add the second can of beans and water and stir to combine. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to med. and simmer, stirring occasionally, until thickened, 10-12 minutes, being careful not to let the mixture stick to the bottom of the pot. Add corn; cook to heat through, 2-3 minutes. Stir in onion and garlic powders. Remove from heat; stir in green onions and cooked rice.
Heat tortillas in microwave for about 30-45 seconds or until all are warmed through. Fill each with about 2/3 cup bean and rice mixture and 1/4 cup cheese on one side of tortilla. Fold, and hold in sides. Starting from the filled end, holding sides in as you work, tightly roll into a bundle. --I like to then grill it on a skillet to make the outside crispy.

Cheesy Black Bean Burritos

These are just super simple, dinner in a hurry, and everyone in my family will eat them. I think they taste really good and they are healthy too. I think I heard somewhere that a bean served with corn makes a complete protein. If that is the case this is a perfect meal for a vegetarian.

Ingredients:
15 oz can black beans, drained
10 oz bag frozen corn
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup low fat sour cream
2/3 cup salsa
8-10 flour tortillas

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350. In a large bowl mix black beans, corn, cheese, sour cream, and salsa. Spread mixture on tortillas, roll and place in pan seam side down. Bake for 20 minutes.

Black Bean Hummus

I am currently addicted to hummus. It is so good. I love dipping pita bread in it, but fresh veggies are good too. I think I like this made with the black beans even more than the original hummus. They are both delish!

Ingredients:
2 cans (15oz) black beans
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup tahini
2 tsp cumin
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
12 Kalamata olives, thinly sliced
paprika to sprinkle on top

Directions:
Combine beans, olive oil, lemon juice, tahini, garlic, cumin, salt, and cayenne pepper in a food processor or blender. Process until mixed or it reaches the desired consistency, scraping the side of the bowl as needed. Spoon the hummus into a bowl and sprinkle with the olives and paprika. Serve with pita chips, bagel chips, fresh cut carrots. Refrigerate leftover.

Hummus

Kayli and her vegetarian ways have introduced us to hummus. It is actually really good. My niece, Lia, just posted this recipe onto her blog. I'm thinking I may do a blog to recipe book with this blog so I want the recipe for hummus included. Plus I've added another ingredient (cumin) to her recipe that I think just makes the hummus perfect.

Ingredients:
2 cups canned garbanzo beans, drained
1/3 cup tahini (sesame seed paste)
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 tsp salt
2 cloves garlic, halved
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 tsp paprika
1/2-1 tsp ground cumin

Directions:
Place all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Transfer to a serving bowl and sprinkle with paprika.

**An option to give the hummus some kick--add 1/2 cup cilantro and a jalapeno or two--so good.

Vegetarian Chili

My 15 yr old daughter is a vegetarian. I'm pretty sure she does this to spite her parents but occasionally I'll cater to her diet. Vegetarian chili would not be my first choice but this was pretty good and it was super easy to make. I really like crock pot meals because dinner time is so busy around our house either driving kids to and from places or doing homework etc. So I know I'll go back to this recipe. Plus this is just the type of thing I like to eat on a cold winter day. I found this on my favorite website for recipes allrecipes.com According to that each serving only has 218 calories, 1.6 grams of fat, 10.7g protein, and 11.7 g of fiber--so it's healthy too, can't beat that!

Ingredients:
1 15 oz can black beans
1 15 oz can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 15 oz can refried beans
1 16 oz can chili beans
1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes
1 15 oz can whole kernal corn, drained
1 8oz can tomato sauce
1 4 oz can chilies, chopped
1 onion, chopped
1 c water
1 pkg taco seasoning mix
1 pkg hidden valley ranch dry mix
opt. 1 lb lean ground beef

Directions:
In a slow cooker, combine black bean soup, kidney beans, garbanzo beans, baked beans, tomatoes, corn, onion, bell pepper and celery. Season with garlic, chili powder, parsley, oregano and basil. Cook for at least two hours on high.